Attending the 2024 ESPY Awards, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle became the center of attention when they were unexpectedly “teased” on television by their close friend – Serena Williams. The tennis queen was the host of this event.

In the opening of the show, Serena Williams had a “stormy” monologue when mentioning the presence of Prince Harry and his wife. She humorously shared that she was often present in rooms with the British Royal Family. Then, Serena Williams turned to her two friends and humorously said: “But please, Harry and Meghan, try not to breathe too hard tonight!”.

The tennis queen added: “Because this is my night and I don’t want to be overshadowed by accusations that you’re taking up too much oxygen.” The royal couple took the joke with a smile and were seen beaming as the cameras panned to them.

Serena Williams and Prince Harry have been close friends for more than a decade. They met at the 2014 Super Bowl. Meghan Markle shared on her personal blog The Tig in 2014: “We are the same age, share a love of hot sauce and love fashion, but what unites us most is our belief in surpassing all expectations – our endless ambition.”

Prince Harry’s appearance attracted special attention because he was honored with the Pat Tillman Award for his contributions to the military. However, his acceptance of this prestigious award has received mixed reviews. Some experts said that the British prince’s acceptance of the award honoring the late soldier and NFL player – Pat Tillman – was “bad publicity”.

“His refusal to turn down the Pat Tillman Award, despite a public backlash against a petition calling on ESPN to reconsider its decision… shows just how much Harry’s popularity has declined,” royal expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News. “Former Chief of the Royal Navy and Labour member Admiral Lord Alan West said ‘he should think very carefully’ about accepting this particular award because it ‘is not appropriate for someone in the military’,” she added.

However, author of the book “The King” – Christopher Andersen – supported Prince Harry’s decision to accept the award. He shared: “Harry clearly sees it as a great honor and with what he has done for wounded veterans through the Invictus Games, the Duke of Sussex is certainly a logical choice.” Author Andersen added: “Harry is very proud of his military career and Invictus, so it is no surprise that he was stunned by the backlash. Harry is used to being criticized, but this is a really painful thing for him.”