American ace is back on court having given birth last September. Even when not playing Serena still earns stacks of cash. Serena Williams was the highest paid female athlete for a third consecutive year in 2018, according to an annual list here published by Forbes on Tuesday that was dominated by tennis players. Williams, who returned to competition in March after giving birth last September, earned $62,000 in winnings over the past year but received $18.1 million from an endorsement portfolio unmatched among women in sports, Forbes said. Williams, who will try to equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slam titles when she competes at US Open in New York, earned twice as much off the court as any other female athlete, according to Forbes. Dane Caroline Wozniacki, who captured her maiden grand slam title at this year’s Australian Open, was second on the list with combined earnings of ($13 million) while reigning US Open champion Sloane Stephens ($11.2 million) was third. Spaniard Garbine Muguruza ($11 million) and Russian Maria Sharapova ($10.5 million) rounded out the top five.