Venus Williams may be taking a break from competitive play, but she’s far from inactive! After stepping away from the court due to injuries in 2023, she’s been lively on social media, engaging with fans and promoting her new health and wellness book, Strive. Amidst this, she’s being open about her recovery journey and inspiring others along the way. While fans are eagerly anticipating the news of her return to tennis, Williams has kept them updated with her newest “game.” Sounds interesting, right?

Recently, Venus Williams posted a fun Instagram story featuring herself on an elliptical trainer at the gym. While filming, she embraced the moment with the words “Carpe diem.” The next story was a mirror selfie in which she was showing off her freshly manicured nails, as she captioned it, “Nail game,” with a fire emoji. Did you also get a similar flashback as us? Yes, yes, it’s Coco Gauff.

As it turns out, around the same time last year, Coco Gauff shared a similar picture to her Instagram story. Showing off her vibrant purple and black Halloween-themed nails with the caption, “fav time of the year,” including a ghost emoji. The two WTA champs certainly know a thing or two about looking fashionable.

It looks like these American stars are taking over the internet, one manicure at a time! Although Venus Williams has not been active on the tennis scene much this season, given her recovery is a priority, during an interview with CBS Morning, she admitted that she’s not looking to retire anytime soon. She said, “I’m not done with the racket yet… At this point, it’s about picking and choosing places I want to be. Last year I really wanted to play in Miami – home – because I hadn’t played there in like five years.”

She fulfilled her commitment to compete in Miami this year with her match against Diana Shnaider at the 2024 Miami Open. Even though she didn’t win, it was great to see her perform on court. In the meantime, it looks like Gauff this season is drawing inspiration from arguably the top women in tennis.

Coco Gauff confesses to looking up to the Williams sisters

Ranked third in the WTA, Coco Gauff is making waves after her recent victory at the 2024 China Open, where she defeated Karolina Muchova 6-1, 6-3. This win made her the first American and the youngest player to triumph in Beijing in 11 years, following Serena Williams‘ title in 2013.

In her post-match press conference, Gauff expounded on the aforementioned honor, “I don’t know what the stats are here, but it would be really cool to do it here, especially both of them being my idols. Yeah, I didn’t realize she was 35 when she won that title. It’s pretty impressive.” 

Gauff also expressed how Serena Williams has always been a role model for her, both on television and in person, providing invaluable advice throughout her career. And lately, she has gotten to know Venus Williams a bit better, as she recalled their time playing doubles together during the 2021 French Open which allowed her to learn from Venus’ experience firsthand. Further emphasizing how much she looks up to both sisters, she stated, “Both of them I admire so much. To do anything in the same sentence as them means a lot to me.” 

As Coco Gauff heads to the WTA Finals in Riyadh, perhaps she’ll channel her inner Williams sisters on the court. Meanwhile, Venus is steadily improving and focusing on her recovery. Fingers crossed, we’ll see them both take the court together soon!