- Alex de Minaur fell from Queen’s on Tuesday
- The Australian suffered a surprising defeat in the first round.
- His girlfriend, Katie Boulter, is in action in Birmingham.
Alex de Minaur suffered a shock first-round exit at the Queen’s Club after losing to Lorenzo Musetti in a major setback for the Australian’s Wimbledon preparation.
De Minaur, boyfriend of British star Katie Boulter, reached the final of the men’s singles competition last year but fell at the first hurdle on Tuesday.
The 25-year-old took the first set against his Italian revelation, but only won six more games and was defeated 1-6, 6-4, 6-2.
De Minaur had entered the competition in good form after winning the ‘s-Hertogenbosch grass event in the Netherlands over the weekend, but will not play any further role for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile, Boulter is due to begin his Birmingham Classic campaign later on Tuesday afternoon.
Alex de Minaur was eliminated from Queen’s in the first round of the tournament
The Australian suffered a surprising 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 defeat against Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti.
De Minaur is the boyfriend of British tennis player Katie Boulter (left)
The 27-year-old, seeded fourth in the tournament, will face Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina in the round of 32.
Boulter won the Rothesay Open title in Nottingham on the same day De Minaur triumphed in Holland, but the Australian was in the doghouse despite his double victory.
De Minaur, who won his title six hours before the Boulter final in the East Midlands, did not travel to the UK to watch his match.
However, he had raced to see her win in San Diego earlier this year after winning himself in Acapulco.
“My boyfriend didn’t make the trip even though I thought he would after his victory in Hertogenbosch, so we’ll have to talk about it tonight and see if we’re still together,” Boulter said. “I hope you’re listening to this, we have something to talk about!”
De Minaur rose to No. 7 in the world rankings following last week’s ATP Tour title, and the Australian was on cloud nine with his performance.
De Minaur and Boulter enjoyed a dream weekend by winning both titles on the court last week.
“This achieves a new record in my career, so it’s always a big advantage,” De Minaur said in his on-court interview.
“My first week on grass couldn’t have been better, so I’m looking forward to next week at Queen’s and the entire grass season with a smile on my face. I’m glad I was able to win here in Holland.”
Now he will have to go back to the drawing board before the third major of the year begins on July 1.