Serena Williams tells the story behind her grunting noises on the court

If you have ever seen Serena Williams in action on the tennis courtyou’ve probably wondered what the noises are that she makes when she hits the ball. You know, those powerful grunts that can only come from a passionate player like Williams – whose average serve speed is 106 mph, by the way – and that make you feel really sorry for the tennis ball at the other end of her swing. Listen for yourself here:

Now the star tells the story behind her battle cry on the pitch. In a July 4 episode of “Hot Ones”, Williams said moderator Sean Evans that she began to grunt in honor of one of her favorite players, Monica Seles, who is the best player in the world in 1991 and was considered one of the OGs on the pitch.

“So, I grunt because when I was a kid I liked this tennis player named Monica Seles and she grunts. She had this really cool grunt. And I loved that, I just thought, ‘That’s so cool.'” she said while testing her taste buds with a taste of really spicy chicken wings. “And then I literally grunted at them, and then it became really natural, and then my grunting just became like a… It was really loud.”

But now, after nearly 30 years on the professional tennis tour, Williams says the grunting has become second nature to her and sometimes comes out when she’s not playing tennis.

“I think it’s a way of breathing,” She said. “I grunt when I play golf now. It’s like a part of my life.”

During her conversation with Evans, Williams also talked about her clash with her big sister Venus at the 2003 Australian Open – a match that Serena described as one of the most intense between the two.

Williams said the pressure was high as it was her first chance to win four Grand Slam titles in a row – an achievement that is now considered “Serena Slam.”

“It was a tough match because she actually played really, really well. And to be honest, she should have won. And I remember she missed a shot that she wouldn’t have missed in any other match.” She said. “And I could see that something had just gone wrong… even if just for a split second… It was hard.”