Serena, Sharapova and Venus put on the glitz at 2024 Met Gala

There was no shortage of tennis star power at Monday night’s annual Met Gala, as Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams and Venus Williams were all on hand for fashion’s biggest night at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The Grand Slam-winning trio was joined by actress Zendaya, star of the tennis-themed blockbuster “Challengers,” that’s now playing in theaters, among other A-list celebrities including rapper Bad Bunny, actress Nicole Kidman, model Gigi Haddid and Kim Kardashian.

Each year, attendees at the Met Gala are required to dress according to a certain theme that corresponds to what is being displayed at the museum’s Costume Institute. This year, the task was to fulfill “The Garden of Time,” to go along with the museum’s upcoming exhibit titled, “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.”

Sharapova and the Williams sisters all understood the assignment.

Twenty-three-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena Williams has a long history at the Met Gala, which she co-chaired in 2019. And last year’s event was notable for the younger Williams sister, too, as she and husband Alexis Ohanian announced her second pregnancy at the event.

But this year, Williams walked the red carpet solo in a glittering Balenciaga number which, according to Voguetook 150 hours to make and was made from 25 meters of gold foil-laminated taffeta. She coordinated the outfit with accessories including matching flowers in her hair, rings and a watch, as well as black opera-length gloves, sheer black tights and matching heels.

Her inspiration? While Williams’ outfit wouldn’t have been out of place on a different Disney princess, Belle, she captioned her social media posts from the affair simply: “Going for the gold.”

Meanwhile, Venus Williams joined her sister in a glittering look, wearing a Marc Jacobs number that was covered in tiny mirrors. But while she was one of the first athletes to ever attend the Met Gala 20 years ago, the five-time Wimbledon champion wasn’t immune from experiencing a wardrobe malfunction while getting ready for the event.

“We’re showing all these dresses that are too fragile to wear,” Williams explained to Live From E!‘s Ross Mathews on the red carpet. “He wanted to bring in the fragility of mirrors—I only broke one!”

Sharapova, who plays herself at a fictional version of the gala alongside Serena Williams in the 2018 film “Ocean’s Eight,” first teased her attendance earlier in the day on Monday with a post on her Instagram account from her New York City hotel.

As night fell, the five-time Grand Slam singles champion stepped out on the red carpet wearing a full-bodied tennis-ball yellow gown with a matching flowered chartreuse cape.

While the dress’ designer Prabal Gurung said that the dress was inspired by “the brightness and softness of flowers blooming and bringing new life,” we can’t help but think the muse was, in fact, Sharapova’s longtime profession.

“I usually prefer neutral tones in my everyday life, so it’s nice to explore different colors and wear something that’s unusual and things that you don’t expect from yourself,” Sharapova told Town & Country magazine.

Sharapova later slipped into the role of roving reporter at the event, as she shared candid clips of herself and both sisters at points during the evening.