Katie Boulter sent six-word reminder from boyfriend Alex de Minaur after Wimbledon defeat
British number one Katie Boulter has revealed the first thing that her boyfriend Alex de Minaur said after her defeat to Harriet Dart at Wimbledon.
British tennis star Katie Boulter received some timely advice from her boyfriend Alex de Minaur moments after her heartbreaking Wimbledon defeat. Boulter faced compatriot Harriet Dart at SW19 and passed up multiple match points before losing 10-8 in a final set tie-break.
Boulter, 27, started strongly by winning the opening set 6-4 but Dart responded convincingly by taking the second 6-1. The final set came down to a tie-break and victory was within touching distance for Boulter, with Dart breaking into tears after finding herself 6-2 down.
However, Dart found the composure to win eight of the next 10 points and earn an impressive comeback victory at Boulter’s expense. Having seen the win slip through her fingers, Boulter revealed a six-word piece of advice she received from her partner, De Minaur, which helped lift her spirits.
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“One match doesn't define my career. That's the first thing he [de Minaur] said to me when I got off the court,” Boulter said in her post-match press conference. “He knows what he's talking about. It's not his first rodeo. He's been through it all before, and I'm lucky to have that support.”
It would have been a devastating blow for the British no.1, who had been seeded at the tournament for the first time. Meanwhile, Dart is scheduled to face China’s Xin Wang on Saturday and was delighted to earn a win over Boulter.
"I knew it was always going to be a really tough battle, we played a few weeks ago and it didn't go my way,” Dart said. "I wear my emotions on my sleeve so you see everything how I'm thinking, unfortunately, but I'm so happy to be able to get through. Thank you so much for the support, it was so fab."
De Minaur watched the nearly three-hour-long drama unfold from Boulter’s player’s box, less than an hour after his second round victory over Spaniard Jaume Munar. Boulter and De Minaur, 25, have been together since 2020 and are one of several high-profile relationships within the sport.
Boulter has already hinted that the couple may spend some time away from tennis after Wimbledon but will have little time to do so. Both players are set to take part in the Paris Olympics, while number nine seed De Minaur is still vying for glory at SW19.
Ahead of the tournament, Boulter said: “I watch way too much tennis. My whole life is tennis. Obviously my boyfriend’s in tennis, so I don’t necessarily get that much chance to be outside of it.
“I do love the sport and I love keeping track of how people are doing. There are times when I do say to myself and Alex that we need to get away from it and just focus a little bit.”
