Serena Williams reacts after finding cotton plant in her hotel

Tennis icon Serena Williams has slammed a New York City hotel after noticing a questionable cotton plant being used to decorate a corridor in the establishment.

The 44-year-old, who is celebrating her birthday today, has been in New York to honour the release of Kim Kardashian’s Skims collaboration with Nike.

Williams heavily features in adverts for the NikeSKIMS range with renowned sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson and Olympic gold medal gymnast Jordan Chiles.

The collection drops today, and saw the 23-time Grand Slam champion toasting to Kardashian’s success at a fashion dinner with the 44-year-old’s younger sister, Khloé Kardashian, 41.

“Back with my girls for one epic night! Over 20 years of friendship and we still laugh like no one else is in the room,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “Congratulations on your NikeSkims success!”

Serena Williams was celebrating the release of the Skims x Nike collaboration in New York City (Instagram/serenawilliams)

Before sharing the carousel with her 18.2 million followers, the athlete took to her Stories to give an update on her NYC trip.

She used the moment to question why she’d stumbled upon what appeared to be a cotton plant in the hotel she was staying at.

It’s unclear whether the incident happened before or after she attended the promotional NikeSKIMS event.

“Alright everyone - how do we feel about cotton as decoration?,” Williams asked in the short clip. “Personally, for me, it doesn’t feel great?”

The mother-of-two questioned why cotton was being used as a decoration in her hotel (Instagram/serenawilliams)

In another frame, the mum-of-two could be seen touching the plant, pulling off one of the balls to inspect it further.

Realising it was faux, she told a person who was navigating the camera: “So actually it feels like nail polish remover cotton. Natural.”

Despite the decoration being fake, Williams was visibly shaken by what she saw as she moved out of the camera. She did not mention the hotel she was staying in by name.

The tennis legend’s latest social media moment comes after she uploaded a cryptic post to her platform, confirming she’d had a very ‘difficult August’.

On September 16, Williams wrote: “Dearest gentle reader, My summer started out well but I was plunged into a difficult August. Like many of you, I faced challenges that tested my spirit and resilience.

“Life can sometimes feel overwhelming and it's easy to lose sight of what truly matters—your mental health and well-being.

Williams revealed in another clip that the plat was fake (Instagram/serenawilliams)

“I took some time away to breathe, to reconnect with myself, and to remember that it’s perfectly okay to pause and reconnect.”

In August, the businesswoman was unveiled as Ro’s celebrity ambassador. In a sponsored post, she said she’d lost 31 pounds while taking Zepbound.

The latter is a prescription weight-loss pen that contains tirzepatide, just like Mounjaro.

The announcement that Williams was working with the telehealth company sparked major backlash online.

Actress Jameela Jamil admitted she was concerned by the former tennis No. 1’s promotion of GLP-1 drugs.

She also pleaded with people to make sure they have ‘adequate medical support’ if they do decide to take the medication.