Katie Boulter is enjoying being part of the “circus” surrounding Australian boyfriend Alex De Minaur.
De Minaur is the newest member of the world’s top 10 and the home country’s great hope for a grand slam champion at Melbourne Park in a fortnight’s time.
His relationship with Boulter has generated a lot of attention, with the pair playing mixed doubles together at Wimbledon last summer, and she is happy to share his moment in the spotlight.
“I am a very private person,” she said. “I like to keep myself to myself, my team close, the things that matter most to me away from everything.
“I think it’s definitely been fun to be a part of because it’s been a little bit of a circus, but a good circus. I think it’s awesome that he’s getting the attention that he really does deserve and he’s put the work in for it.
“He’s playing some of the best tennis of his life and it really does fill me with a lot of pride to actually watch him at this moment.
“I feel like I’m sharing him with everyone, which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s definitely a lot. But he’s handled it a lot of his career and he knows how to deal with it and I’m right there next to him.”
View this post on Instagram
With Nick Kyrgios still sidelined through injury, De Minaur will carry home hopes virtually single-handed, but the 24-year-old sees only positives.
“I’m living my dream,” he said. “I can wake up in the morning and know that I’ve achieved a massive milestone, which was very tough to get to. I didn’t know if I was going to achieve it.
“Now I can look at myself and say that I’ve done it, that I’m a completely different player to what I was last year. It’s exciting because I’ve got bigger and better things to come hopefully.”
Boulter and De Minaur have been together since 2020 but the last 12 months have seen both hit new heights in their career.
Boulter enters the Australian Open ranked 57 and heads into a first-round clash with China’s Yuan Yue full of confidence after a great start to 2024.
At the United Cup in Perth, Boulter claimed the biggest victory of her career over world number five Jessica Pegula and has her sights set on another sizeable leap this year.
“It was huge,” she said of her win over the American. “I’m sure it wasn’t the best match of her career but I felt like I was right there.
“She’s one of the top players in the world and it gives you belief that that can be you and I strongly believe that if I keep working the way that I do that I can do that.”
She continued: “Top 100 has not been my number. I think I did that five years ago and now I really want to keep pushing. Even 50, I’ve ticked that off as well.
“And now it’s time to start getting up to the real business side of tennis and I think the work that we’ve been putting in has given me a great platform this past year to really push on and give these girls a go. Now it just takes a little bit of belief and a lot more hard work.”
Zverev sees off Jarry to claim second Italian Open crown
Alexander Zverev claimed his second Italian Open title following a 6-4 7-5 victory over Nicolas Jarry in the final.
The German, who also triumphed in Rome seven years ago, captured his first silverware of the season - and sixth of his career in an ATP Masters event.
Having dropped just a single set on the way to his 11th Masters final, Zverev continued his impressive form by winning 95 per cent of his first-serve points (37 out of 39) and committing just eight unforced errors.
Jarry had enjoyed an impressive fortnight in Rome, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas and Tommy Paul on the way to becoming the first Masters finalist from Chile since Fernando Gonzalez (also at the Italian Open) in 2007.
However, just two break points were enough to deny the 21st seed a fourth career ATP title, with Zverev eventually converting his fourth championship point to ensure a return to the winner's circle.
Data debrief
Zverev joins Rafael Nadal (10) and Novak Djokovic (six) as one of only three players since 2000 to win the Italian Open on multiple occasions.
Landing his second crown in Rome seven years after his first, it marks the longest gap in seasons between two men's singles titles at the event in the Open Era.
Meanwhile, Zverev became the most successful German male in ATP Masters events since the format's introduction in 1990, with his sixth such success seeing him eclipse Boris Becker's total of five.
Raducanu withdraws from French Open qualifying
Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from French Open qualifying, which starts on Monday.
Having endured an injury-hit few years since her 2021 US Open triumph, Raducanu was able to enter the year's second grand slam with a protected ranking of 103rd.
However, that was not enough to put her on the automatic entry list and she was not awarded a wildcard, making her third alternate for the women's draw.
No reason has been given for Raducanu's withdrawal from next week's qualifying tournament, and she can now only feature at Roland-Garros if three players drop out.
Raducanu was beaten 6-2 6-2 by Argentine qualifier Maria Lourdes Carle in the first round of the Madrid Open last month, subsequently saying she was "mentally and emotionally exhausted".
A host of withdrawals meant she did not have to go through qualifying for the Australian Open earlier this year, though she was beaten by China's Wang Yafan in the second round.
Raducanu has not made it past the second round in six major appearances since her triumph at Flushing Meadows, and she missed the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open last year after undergoing wrist and ankle surgeries.
Swiatek seals Italian Open hat-trick after soaring past Sabalenka
Iga Swiatek stormed to her third Italian Open title following a dominant 6-2 6-3 victory over Aryna Sabalenka.
The world number one took just under an hour-and-a-half to deny the world number two, and complete a hat-trick of triumphs in Rome.
The pair were contesting a second final in as many events, with Swiatek saving three championship points before eventually prevailing in the Madrid Open showpiece a fortnight ago.
However, it was one-way traffic this time around. The Pole converted two out of three break points as she controlled the opening set.
Sabalenka was the last player to deny Swiatek in a WTA final, that coming at last year's Madrid Open.
Although, the second seed was helpless as her opponent broke again in game seven of the second set, before wrapping up a fourth title of the season ahead of the French Open later this month.
Data debrief
Landing her third Italian Open title before turning 23, Swiatek is only the second player to achieve that feat after Gabriela Sabatini.
In fact, at 22 years and 352 days old, she is the youngest player to win 10 WTA 1000 titles since the introduction of the format in 2009.
The Pole also became the third player to triumph in Madrid and Rome during the same season, after Dinara Safina (2009) and Serena Williams (2013).
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
