Katie Boulter was pictured on Court One on Monday watching her boyfriend Alex de Minaur battle for a place in the men’s singles quarter-finals at Wimbledon against Arthur Fils.
This comes just days after Boulter was eliminated from the tournament after being defeated in the second round of the women’s singles by fellow Briton Harriet Dart, 6-4, 1-6, 6-7.
If De Minaur overcomes Fils, it will be the first time in the Australian tennis star’s career that he has reached the quarter-finals at the All England Championship.
Boulter enjoyed the atmosphere inside the stadium, smiling as she watched her boyfriend play, although she appeared to cut a nervous figure at times.
De Minaur, who has won twice on the ATP Tour this season, started well against Fils, who is ranked 34th on the men’s circuit.
The Australian took the first and second sets before Fils rallied in the third rally, tying the Australian at four games apiece before breaking his serve twice to win the set 6-4.
Boulter, 27, has also enjoyed an excellent 2024 so far, having beaten 2021 Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova and former US Open champion Emma Raducanu on her way to winning the Rothesay Open in June.
Prior to that, she also enjoyed success in San Diego in February, beating Marta Kostyuk to claim her second WTA Tour title.
On Thursday, Boulter fought a thrilling battle against British number two Harriet Dart in what was a very close contest that lasted almost three hours. Both players had predicted an absolute battle, and it certainly was. Boulter came forward and broke Dart’s third service game to take the first set 6-4.
De Minaur had rushed from Court 3 to support his girlfriend after beating Jaume Munar in the second round of the men’s singles tournament. He was heard shouting from the stands: “Come on, Katie!”, according to journalist Stuart Ballard.
However, Dart raced to a 4-0 lead in the second set, before taking the set 6-1, breaking her opponent’s serve three times, but appearing to break down in tears during the match. The final exchange was decided in a tiebreak, with Boulter hitting a forehand wide into the air and handing the match to Dart.
“She was better than me today,” Boulter admitted. “I didn’t really notice her crying. At 6-2 down, she had nothing to lose and she relaxed. I think I played to her strengths as well.”
“I wish her the best. We are teammates at the Billie Jean King Cup. We have come a long way together. I hope she goes far in this tournament.
“These kinds of defeats hurt, but I’m going to take advantage of this difficult moment to encourage myself. This time next year I’m going to be a better player.”
But to continue…