Serena Williams welcomes baby girl
Tennis superstar Serena Williams has given birth to a baby girl, prompting an outpouring of delight from fellow professionals, celebrities and fans of the sporting icon.
Williams, who will turn 36 later this month, was admitted to the St Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida on Wednesday before going into labor overnight.
There was no immediate confirmation of the birth from Williams' representatives.
Elder sister Venus Williams described herself as "super excited" after being informed of the reports concerning the baby as she walked on to the court for her third-round match at the US Open in New York.
Congrats Serena!!! So much joy for you!!! https://t.co/u4edTrqIbB
— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) September 1, 2017
However she declined to take questions on the subject in her post-match press conference.
"I'm definitely available to answer questions about tennis. That's all right now," Venus told reporters.
Congratulations to @serenawilliams for giving birth to a baby girl!
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 1, 2017
Sending you ❤️ from your friends & family at the #USOpen and @WTA! pic.twitter.com/zv8HW0dDTN
Earlier, a producer with the Florida-based WPBF television station cited hospital sources as saying Williams' daughter weighed in at 3.09 kilograms.
Williams, who is engaged to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, was swiftly greeted with an avalanche of congratulations from well-wishers.
👏👏👏🍼🍼🍼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 https://t.co/yxKrmKO32X
— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert) September 1, 2017