After Katie Boulter’s greatest career victory to date, her lover Alex de Minaur is embarrassed.
In the San Diego Open final, British No. 1 Katie Boulter defeated Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 to win her maiden WTA 500 tournament.
Boulter’s 2024 season has gotten off to a great start, as her victory over Kostyuk ensures that she will make her maiden appearance in the top 30.
Alex de Minaur, the 27-year-old Leicester native’s partner, kept an eye on him and booked an early morning trip after winning the title in Acapulco.
In her post-match remarks, Boulter expressed gratitude to her Australian partner.
She said, “I would like to express my gratitude to my boyfriend in a small way.”
“He finished around midnight last night, and I truly want to make him feel uncomfortable. I do appreciate that he took a 4.15 taxi this morning and a 6 o’clock flight to come here today.
(L-R) In the San Diego Open 2024 Singles Final, Alex De Minaur (right) had to get up very early to support his girlfriend Katie Boulter in San Diego. Coach Damian Rodriguez and boyfriend/professional tennis player Alex De Minaur react to a point by Katie Boulter of Great Britain over Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine.
“It’s been a very special week for a variety of reasons. I’ve put a lot of effort into this one and played some terrific tennis all week. It’s fairly amazing.
“I was a little anxious, so today was a full war, even with myself. But I’m really proud of myself since I was able to cross the line.
“It was more about me maintaining my mental toughness, and I was able to do so by keeping my composure and going inward to calm down a bit. That must have been a huge assistance to me since I was able to unwind and play through strokes a little bit more after that.
Following a level first set, the sixth-seeded Ukrainian started to dominate Boulter, winning many games in a row and quickly capturing the first set.
Boulter rallied to tie the match at five points apiece, but Kostyuk got back on track to win the opening set 7–5.
After that, Boulter started to click in the second set. She won 6-2 and forced a decisive third set by dominating on her first serve.
The British player maintained her lead into the third set, winning the first break point to take a 3-1 lead. In the seventh game, Boulter broke through once more, and he won in two hours and thirteen minutes from that point on.
In 2023, both ladies achieved breakthrough seasons and won their first WTA Tour titles last year.
Last summer, Boulter won her first grass championship in Nottingham, and Kostyuk triumphed in Austin.
