Latest news with #AlexDeMinaur
The Sun
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
British tennis star Katie Boulter hopes £1.9m love nest she shares with Aussie ace will help boost Wimbledon chances
TENNIS star Katie Boulter is counting on home comforts at this year's Wimbledon — by staying with her fiancé at their £1.9million love nest. The 28-year-old was spotted on a stroll with fellow ace Alex De Minaur near their three-bed cottage this week. 4 4 British No2 Katie cut a casual look in a baggy red T-shirt and leggings, paired with white trainers. It is understood Alex, 26, bought the London pad in 2023 and they have been living in it together for some time. A source said: 'Love is very much in the air for Katie and Alex. They've been together for five years, they got engaged last year, and they've found their dream home. "They can only hope to have as much success on the court next week as they've had in their relationship.' Katie, from Leicester, hopes sleeping in her own bed improves her chances of success when she and Australian men's No1 Alex start their Wimbledon campaigns next week. Katie told Women's Health: 'Being at home brings a sense of calm that's hard to replicate in hotels, and I think that can really help with focus.' Last year the fan favourite made the second round before . Afterwards Katie went on a winning run which saw her break into the world Top 25 for the first time. She is currently No41. Sydney-born Alex is world ranked No11 and last year reached the Wimbledon quarter finals. A representative for Katie was approached for comment. Meet Alex de Minaur - Spanish-speaking 'honorary Brit' dating Katie Boulter and about to take on Novak Djokovic 4
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Furious Jack Draper boils over at Queen's as Jiri Lehecka denies British No 1
As Jack Draper has spent the past week here trying to find rhythm and comfort in his first grass-court tournament of the season, Jiri Lehecka had bulldozed everything in his path. After two tension-filled hours, their form was reflected in the scoreline as the unseeded Lehecka toppled a frustrated Draper 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the final and deprive the Briton of a shot at competing for first title on home soil. Although he competed brilliantly throughout the week, navigating two tough three-set wins over Alexi Popyrin and Brandon Nakashima, Draper has struggled as he continues to adjust to grass after a successful clay court season and he has looked vulnerable in each match. Advertisement Related: Nick Kyrgios: 'If I'd acted a bit differently, I would have had a Wimbledon title' Lehecka, however, had been the outstanding performer this week, defeating the fifth seed, Alex de Minaur, in the opening round before continuing to march through the draw. His massive first serve and clean, destructive forehand dominated much of the match and he outplayed Draper for significant stretches, earning him a well-deserved first grass-court final. On a stifling day in west London, with temperatures scaling 30C before cooling, Draper set the tone with a dire opening service game, punctuating a series of forehand errors with a double fault on break point as he immediately lost his serve. While Draper floundered, Lehecka was flawless throughout the set. He served well, hitting his spots and he marched through his own service games without a problem. Lehecka also dominated the baseline with his forehand, attacking without hesitation. He refused to allow Draper any hope of establishing himself in the set. Advertisement Emma Raducanu has been handed a testing draw at the Eastbourne Open, where she is expected to make a return after managing a back problem that has troubled the British No 1 since she competed in Strasbourg last month, before the French Open. The 2021 US Open champion took an off-court medical timeout during her quarter-final loss to Zheng Qinwen at Queen's Club last week, after which it was confirmed she would miss this week's Berlin Open, having been offered a wildcard. Seeded seventh in the draw for Eastbourne, Raducanu has been drawn against the American Ann Li in the first round, with the two-time Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur her likely second-round opponent. Daria Kasatkina, the Australian world No 16 and last year's Eastbourne winner, is a potential quarter-final opponent. In Berlin, Marketa Vondrousova brushed aside Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, to reach her first final since lifting the Wimbledon title two years ago. The 25-year-old Czech, ranked 164, dominated Sabalenka 6-2, 6-4, to set up a title clash against Wang Xinyu, who beat Liudmila Samsonova 6-4, 6-1 in. her semi-final. Vondrousova plummeted down the rankings from sixth after missing several months with a left shoulder injury for which she underwent surgery last year. PA, AFP Advertisement Draper's serve has been his saving grace here, keeping him competitive when he has often struggled with his forehand. He served immaculately throughout the second set, finally putting Lehecka under pressure on his own service games, and his resilience was finally rewarded as Lehecka threw in his first dire service game at 4-5, relinquishing the break in the process. Encounters between two excellent servers on grass courts often do not lead to a particularly thrilling match-up, but it makes the decisive moments even more tense. After both players had breezed through their service games early in set three, Draper blinked first. As his first serve deteriorated, Lehecka snatched the decisive break for 6-5 with a searing backhand winner. Draper finally boiled over and he responded to the break by smacking his racket against the interactive screen on the side of the court, momentarily disabling it. Although Draper regained his composure and fought until the end, Lehecka coolly closed out an excellent win. This report will update after the second semi-final
Daily Mail
19-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Katie Boulter triumphs in sweltering three-set Battle of the Brits against Sonay Kartal - as British No2 eyes Nottingham Open three-peat on the court she calls her 'house'
Katie Boulter calls the Centre Court here in Nottingham her 'house' and showed on Thursday she will not be handing the keys over without a fight. The 28-year-old, who grew up in nearby Leicester and trained at this tennis centre as a child, has won the Nottingham Open in each of the past two years. And she kept her bid for a record-breaking third successive title on course by beating Sonay Kartal in a 2hr 26min Battle of Britain. Boulter appeared to be wilting in the 28°C heat against her Billie Jean King Cup team-mate, requiring painkillers after being blown away in the second set, then going a break down in the third. 'I am definitely proper British because I can't handle the heat,' the eighth seed joked afterwards. 'It was killing me.' But Boulter came back from the dead to break back for 4-4 in the deciding set, then went on to seal a 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 win and set up a quarter-final today against American McCartney Kessler. 'This is as close as home can ever feel like for me,' said the world No 39, who confirmed she has entered the US Open mixed doubles with her fiance Alex de Minaur. 'I literally feel like I step into my house when I come on to this court. 'At the very end, I just wanted to grit my teeth as hard as I could and get over the line.' Boulter will reclaim the British No 1 spot if she reaches another final in Nottingham, having been displaced by Emma Raducanu last week. However, she expects Kartal to soon surpass her in the rankings. Kartal was ranked as low as 271st at the start of last year's grass-court season. But the 23-year-old has enjoyed an astonishing rise in the past 12 months to soar into the world top 50 for the first time. 'I am going into Wimbledon feeling super confident,' said Kartal. 'My goal was to end the year top 50, so I am proud to have done it halfway through. 'To have three Brits close together in the rankings, the No 1 spot is in the back of our minds. It is really good to have that rivalry.' British 17-year-old Mimi Xu lost 7-5, 6-1 to Polish sixth seed Magda Linette in her debut WTA tournament. Defeat came a day after she sat a biology A-level exam - and was handed a wildcard for Wimbledon. 'After my match on Tuesday, I was just in revision mode and I didn't think about tennis until after the exam,' said Xu. 'To get the news about the wildcard was amazing. I was so happy.'
Daily Mail
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Alex de Minaur gives Katie Boulter wedding update - as Australia star reveals when the tennis power couple plan to tie the knot
Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur has offered an honest update about who is in charge of wedding preparations as he and Katie Boulter prepare to tie the knot. The pair, who have been dating since March 2020, announced their engagement in December ahead of the Australian Open. De Minaur and Boutler had shared a selfie of themselves on social media to confirm the news, with the British star sporting a stunning engagement ring in the picture. The Australian, the world No12, was asked by the BBC about preparations for the wedding at Queen's as he builds towards Wimbledon next month. De Minaur appeared to admit that Boulter had taken a lead on wedding plans, before revealing when they are planning to tie the knot. 'That's the hardest job out there,' De Minaur said when asked how wedding planning was going. 🗣️💬 'Way harder than playing tennis!' 😅 Alex de Minaur and Katie Boulter's wedding planning is tougher than they thought 💍🤵♂️👰 — BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 19, 2025 View this post on Instagram A post shared by Katie Boulter (@katiecboulter) 'Way harder than playing tennis at the moment. 'I would like to say I have some sort of say in it, at least I think I do, that might not be 100% 'I do think we are probably looking at next year, that's the plan.' De Minaur had joked at the Australian Open in Janaury about how he needed to win more matches to help fund their wedding. 'When I'm on the court, and you see me so stressed out, I'm just thinking of the wedding budget,' he quipped on court. 'That's why I'm like, 'I need to win more money, I need to win more matches. 'That's all that goes through my head. So now, you know what's going on inside my head.' Having initially met on the professional tennis circuit, the pair had bumped into each other while out for a 6am coffee. It was here that their relationship blossomed and Boulter admitted that was when she knew he was the one. 'We bumped into each other at six in the morning and ended up getting a coffee. From that moment, I knew I was in it for the long haul,' Boulter had previously told The Age. Over the years, the pair have captured the hearts of many tennis fans for their blossoming relationship, with Boulter and De Minaur both regularly seen in the stands watching each other play. Earlier this week, De Minaur spoke out in support of his fiancee after Boulter revealed the extent of the social media abuse she receives in an interview with the BBC. The 28-year-old's examples included a message telling her to buy 'candles and a coffin for your entire family' with a reference to her 'grandmother's grave if she's not dead by tomorrow', one stating she should 'go to hell' as she had cost the poster money, and another stating 'hope you get cancer'. Boulter said: 'I just wonder who the person is that has sent that. I don't think it's something that I would ever say to my worst enemy. 'It's just an awful, awful thing to say to anyone. It's horrible. 'It shows how vulnerable we are. You really don't know if this person is on site. You really don't know if they're nearby or if they know where you live or anything like that.' Following the interview, a De Minaur has called for 'angry gamblers' to be held accountable. 'It's great for her to step up and shine a light into this, which is something that happens to every single tennis player out there. Every single athlete, I would say,' he said. 'Hopefully there is something that can be done about it. It's something that's been going on for a while now. It's something that a lot of people have spoken out against, but it doesn't change.'
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Alex de Minaur responds after fiancee goes public with 'awful' revelation
Alex de Minaur has thrown his support behind fiancee Katie Boulter after the British tennis player shone a light on some of the 'awful' abuse she's been receiving on social media. Speaking to BBC Sport on Tuesday, Boulter once again lifted the lid on the situation that she and many other top tennis players face when they lose matches. The 28-year-old shared a number of examples of vile messages she's received in recent times, including one telling her to buy "candles and a coffin for your entire family" with a reference to her "grandmother's grave if she's not dead by tomorrow". One person stated she should "go to hell" because she had cost them money, and another said "hope you get cancer". Boulter said: "I just wonder who the person is that has sent that. I don't think it's something that I would ever say to my worst enemy. It's just an awful, awful thing to say to anyone. It's horrible. "It shows how vulnerable we are. You really don't know if this person is on site. You really don't know if they're nearby or if they know where you live or anything like that." Boulter said she believes the majority of the messages come from gamblers who've lost money depending on results. And speaking after his surprise first-round loss to Jiri Lehecka at Queen's, de Minaur agreed. "When you lose, you're feeling not in the best state emotionally, but then you've also got to deal with everything that happens behind the scenes with angry gamblers," he said. "I haven't gone on my social media yet, but I'm sure I'll have a lot of people not too happy with my result today. "Every single tennis player on the tour gets thousands, millions of messages every time they lose a match or they cost someone money betting on them. So it's something that you've gotten used to. I would love for it to be dealt with or fixed somehow, but I'm not too sure what's the answer." The Aussie star said about his fiancee: "It's great for her to step up and shine a light into this, which is something that happens to every single tennis player out there. Every single athlete, I would say. Hopefully there is something that can be done about it. It's something that's been going on for a while now. It's something that a lot of people have spoken out against, but it doesn't change." Boulter's revelation came on the same day that it was revealed a man who's been stalking fellow British star Emma Raducanu applied for Wimbledon tickets. The man, who was recently given a restraining order, had his name red-flagged and highlighted by the All England Club's security system, and his request for tickets was subsequently rejected. The man had made an appearance at a match Raducanu was playing in Dubai in February, leaving her visibly shaken and hiding behind the umpire's chair when she saw him. Earlier this month, Raducanu revealed the ordeal had made her "wary" when going out. "I try not to be careless about it because you only realise how much of a problem it is when you're in that situation, and I don't necessarily want to be in that situation again," she told BBC Sport. Meanwhile, de Minaur's 6-4 6-2 loss at Queen's has left him short of match practice heading into Wimbledon, after he opted to take a break following the French Open. The Aussie star opted not to defend his title at Rosmalen in the Netherlands, taking a break before playing Queen's due to feeling burnt out by the relentless nature of the schedule. He hadn't planned to playing either of the final warm-ups next week before Wimbledon - Eastbourne or Mallorca - but might need to rethink. "Obviously wasn't the kind of result I was hoping for coming here to Queen's," he said. "So back to the drawing board, and we're going to have to make some decisions (on where to play next)." RELATED: Tennis world in frenzy over news about Kyrgios and Naomi Osaka Aryna Sabalenka under fire over 'classless' act after French Open final Australia's women's No.1 Daria Kasatkina also suffered a surprise loss on Tuesday, continuing a poor start to her grass-court season. She suffered a 6-3 6-2 loss to Wang Xinyu at the Berlin Open, which followed another first-round loss to Sonay Kartal at Queen's last week. with AAP
