WATCH: Serena Williams rocks Kobe Bryant T-shirt as she recaps moments before blockbuster Super Bowl performance with Kendrick Lamar

Tennis icon Serena Williams is using her social media platform to bask in the universal approval she's received for her dancing cameo in Kendrick Lamar's Superbowl half-time show. The 23-time Major champion made a surprise 6-second appearance when the cameras picked her up performing a crip dance at the end of Lamar's set.

She has revealed that her appearance was no accident and that Lamar's team had watched footage of her celebration "crip-walk" after she won the 2012 London Olympic gold medal and thought they could work it into Lamar's Superbowl routine. Williams has received numerous plaudits for the dance.

She's now taken to Instagram and posted a message in which she's rocking a Kobe Bryant T-shirt and rehearsing her moves before the big show. Accompanying the post, she wrote that she simply couldn't resist Lamar's invitation:

"When @kendricklamar and team called and was like ‘we’ve been trying to do something forever, what about this? We loved your crip walk at the Olympics after you won the gold medal.’ I’m like Super Bowl? Are you serious? When in the world would I ever be able to dance at a Superbowl? (Never) let’s do it! I knew my winning dance after the @olympics would pay off one day. End of story."

Serena Williams Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/reel/DF7xfiIxkhM/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link)

Serena Williams and Kobe Bryant were good friends right up to the basketball legend's untimely death in 2020, and she's continued her relationship with Vanessa, Bryant's widow. She attended his two-hour memorial ceremony at the Staples Center and shared a short video message entitled "Forever" at the event.

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Serena Williams, Kobe Bryant and Kendrick Lamar all shared a friendship and mutual respect

Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show - Source: Getty

Kobe Bryant had picked up a tennis racket after his basketball career ended and thus shared a special bond with Williams. She took to her Instagram page on the day Bryant played his last NBA game to pay tribute:

"I'm in tears. Congrats Kobe Bryant. You inspire every athlete for a lifetime."

The pair were pictured before Williams' final appearance at the 2019 US Open, in which a 37-year-old Serena was overcome, 6-3, 7-5, by the teenaged Bianca Andreescu. Bryant posted to his Facebook page just before the match began:

"Serena Williams, let’s do this today. The queen of tennis as a muse to ~legacyandthequeen. Always an inspiration to the next generation. Let’s goooo! US OPEN TENNIS"

Serena Williams t-shirt bearing Kobe Bryant's face was a fitting reminder of the great man's sporting legacy. Kendrick Lamar will have approved of the tribute - he too was great friends with Bryant. At ComplexCon in 2017, Bryant was asked if Lamar reminded him of anyone on the basketball court; he replied: "Yes, it was me."