Wimbledon 2022: Alex Di Minaur and his girlfriend Katie Boulter have won over Wimbledon crowds

Nick Kyrgios has been getting the headlines for the wrong reasons at Wimbledon, but it is another Aussie who’s grace - and English girlfriend - has won over British tennis fans.

Novak Djokovic says he won’t risk entering America if he isn’t guaranteed a start in the US Open. Picture: AFP

It hasn’t been easy for the Aussie blokes playing at Wimbledon this year to win over the British crowds.

They can blame Nick Kyrgios for that because of his phony war against the spectators he reckons have it in for him.

It is true that a lot of people only attend his matches out of curiosity - either in the hope of either seeing him lose or blow a fuse.

But they’re not the rowdy mob he makes them out to be. Truth be told, the Wimbledon crowds are the best behaved and welcoming in world tennis.

You just can’t charm them by being the loudest person in the room, you need to do more than that, but there’s one Australian male who’s won them all over - the old-fashioned, romantic way.

It’s Alex de Minaur - Australia’s highest ranked player - and the Poms can’t get enough of him.

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The Poms can’t get enough of Australia’s highest ranked player, Alex de Minaur Picture: Getty Images

His performances on court so far have been near flawless but the real reason the Brits have taken him to heart is because he’s dating rising English tennis starlet Katie Boulter.

The young lovebirds have been together for over a year after announcing they were an item on International Women’s Day, 2021, but it’s only just this past week that have been thrust into the spotlight as tennis’ new power couple.

That’s because they are so smitten with each other, turning up at each other’s matches then sending sweet shout outs that have melted the hearts of the crowds.

When de Minaur was interviewed on court after reaching the third round of Wimbledon for the first time in his life, his first reaction was: “Before we talk about my match, can we just talk about Katie Boulter today? I mean, she had a pretty good win herself.”

Unlike Kyrgios, who uses his press conferences to vent his anger at the world, de Minaur spends his time with the press just gushing about his sweetheart.

“It’s amazing. I mean, what she was able to do today was an amazing effort,” he said.

“I’m just stoked for her. You know, this is her home slam. She gets to enjoy it.

“I just loved to see her back. This is back where she belongs. In no time she will be even higher than ever. She’s got an incredible level.”

English player Katie Boulter is a big reason why her boyfriend Alex Di Minaur has won over British crowds. Picture: Getty Images

Boulter is just as infatuated with her beau, describing herself as a ‘lucky girl.’

“Yeah, he’s a pretty good boyfriend,” she said.

“He’s someone that I have a lot of admiration for on and off the tennis court.

“He is the epitome of a fighter, who goes out and gives their all every single day. That’s what I aspire to be like. It really helps me because I can push myself; he helps me do that. I’m a very lucky girl.”

The cute couple have become the darlings of Wimbledon, which is completely at odds with de Minaur’s plans to fly under the radar.

Unlike Kyrgios, he prefers to stay out of the limelight to focus on his game - which is also in very good shape even if it’s not getting as much attention as his trash-talking countryman.

“I’ve got my own journey, my own world. I’m just more of the kind of head-down, tunnel-vision, try to do my stuff the best I can,” he said.

“I don’t know whether I’ll ever be in the spotlight due to off-court stuff, to be quite honest.

“I feel, in that sense, I might be a bit boring, in that I probably won’t get into trouble and do all these other things.

“I’d rather let my tennis do all the talking - and if I’m going to be in the spotlight, it’s because of my tennis, not for anything else.”

Djokovic’s deportation fears as he faces 11-month exile

Once burnt, twice shy — Novak Djokovic says he won’t risk a repeat of his humiliating deportation from Australia by flying to New York City in August unless he’s guaranteed a start in the US Open.

The former world No.1 maintains he did nothing wrong when he flew to Melbourne in January in the belief he had all the right paperwork — saying his expulsion from Australia had more to do with politics than health.

As things stand, Djokovic also can’t enter the US unless he gets vaccinated but said he won’t bother getting on the plane this time unless he’s given an iron-clad assurance he won’t be turned around.

“I did hear unofficially that some people got away with it, some people who are not ‘famous’, but I would never even try to go to the USA if it is not allowed,” Djokovic told Serbian journalists at Wimbledon as he progressed to the third round after demolishing Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Novak Djokovic says he won’t risk entering America if he isn’t guaranteed a start in the US Open. Picture: AFP

“Some people think that I made that mistake in Australia, but it was the contrary in fact – I had the exemption etc, let’s not go over the same story again.

“Bottom line is: if I am told that I cannot go, I won’t go, I would never put myself in such a position. Even if I get in, they would see me on TV playing tennis and pick me up!”

If Djokovic does miss the US Open, a tournament he has won three times — the 35-year-old faces an 11-month break before his next grand slam because he is also currently still banned from returning to Australia.

He hopes authorities in both countries will change their mind as the rules around Covid continue to change, particularly in the US, where the ban on unvaccinated people only applies to foreigners.

That double standard has irked US tennis player Tennys Sandgren, who also missed this year’s Australian Open because he’s an anti-vaxxer.

Novak Djokovic was detained, then booted out of Australia. Picture: AFPTV/AFP

As an American citizen, Sandgren is allowed to play at the US Open but has argued the same rules should apply to everyone regardless of their nationality.

“What he said makes total sense – if unvaccinated players are not allowed to compete at the US Open, then it should be the case for everyone,” Djokovic said.

“I don’t see the medical logic behind it, that Tennys can play because he is a citizen of the USA, and I cannot.

“If I had a US passport or a green card, I would be able to play.

“Maybe there is a political logic behind it – not medical – but I would rather not get into that and you can understand why.”

INTO THE THIRD ROUND

Kokkinakis felt the full force of Novak Djokovic’s crusade to make up for lost time.

Although Djokovic was adamant he didn’t target Kokkinakis because of his nationality, the Serbian didn’t show him any mercy as he raced to a lopsided 6-1 6-4 6-2 victory in just two hours.

In a sport where the most telling messages are often unsaid, it was a brutal reminder from Djokovic about how determined he is to chalk up his 21st grand slam title after being denied the chance in Australia in January.

“I did not have any extra intensity or desire to win this match just because Thanasi is Australian,” Djokovic said.

“Actually, on the contrary, I really have a good relationship with Thanasi. He’s a great guy. We get along off the court very well.

“Of course, on the court we want to win against each other but I felt there was a lot of respect today between the two players.

“That’s what matters the most, of course. One of us gets the win. But there’s always, I think, a necessity to show respect for the game and each other.

“I don’t have any grudge over anybody really coming from Australia.”

Making his first appearance on Wimbledon’s centre court, Kokkinankis didn’t play badly by any means.

In his first trip to Wimbledon centre court, Thanasi Kokkinakis didn’t play poorly but was blown away by Novak Djokovic. Picture: Getty Image

He served exceptionally well, firing 11 aces past Djokovic, and even hit more winners than the Serb, but still went down in straight sets.

“It wasn’t great from my end, I wasn’t able to execute,” Kokkinakis said.

“He does everything right. It was pretty one-way traffic. It was frustrating. I know I got chopped today.”

The signs were ominous for Kokkinakis right from the outset when he broke a string on the second point of the match and only had one spare racquet.

He managed to get through the rest of the match alright, but was still powerless to halt Djokovic and now hopes he wins the tournament so he doesn’t feel any more deflated.

“If someone beats him when he’s playing like that it means I’m even further off than I thought,” Kokkinakis said.

“It was like playing a wall. That’s what it felt like.

“He just did everything right. He had a high first-serve percentage, he returned great, he volleyed well, he just made things uncomfortable.”

“Tactically he was on point against me, he was rushing me quick.”

Even Djokovic admitted he played exceptionally well. He dropped a set in his opening match against South Korean Kwon Soon-woo so he had wanted to raise his standards regardless of who was next in his way.

“The quality of tennis was really high from my side, much better than the first match performance,” he said.

“I knew that I had to start off well today because I was facing a really tricky opponent, someone that serves well, has a big serve, a big forehand. I didn’t want to give him too much time.

“I played with not too many unforced errors from the back of the court. Whenever I needed to put the return in, I did. So all in all just a really, really satisfying performance.”