Katie Boulter wins her first WTA 500 tournament for a 112,000 pay-day to seal a 'pretty good week'

Tennis’s power couple have enjoyed a double triumph weekend with British number one Katie Boulter’s boyfriend Alex de Minaur winning a tournament in Acapulco before a whirlwind 2,000-mile trip to see her capture a title of her own.

Boulter has sealed her first ever WTA 500 tournament win with a stunning comeback victory over Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk – and then took the time to publicly thank her boyfriend in the crowd.

It has been a dream week for tennis’s love match pair, which saw Boulter, 27, beat the Ukrainian Kostyuk 5-7 6-2 6-2 in the final of the San Diego Open to secure a £112,000 pay-day – just a day after De Minaur, 25, triumphed at the Mexico Open.

As Boulter accepted her award, the Brit couldn’t help but playfully ’embarrass’ her partner who had flown over 2,000 miles at 6am to make it in time to sit courtside and watch her hit a career high.

She said: ‘I want to say a small special thank you to my boyfriend. He finished last night at midnight and I really want to embarrass him.

Katie Boulter beat Marta Kostyuk to claim her first WTA 500 tournament win in San Diego

De Minaur (right) cheers on Boulter from courtside along with her coach Damian Rodriguez

Boulter and De Minaur are one of the sport’s power couples after getting together a few years back and the Aussie was determined to be at the Brit’s landmark final on Sunday

Boulter was awarded a ceremonial surfboard as well as a trophy at the San Diego Open

Alex de Minaur rushed from Acapulco to San Diego in the early hours to watch Katie Boulter

Katie Boulter thanks her boyfriend Alex de Minaur after winning the title in San Diego:

“I want to say a small special thank you to my boyfriend. He finished last night at midnight. He got on a 6 a.m. flight to be here today. So I do appreciate it.” 🥹 pic.twitter.com/m7jtryjIvD

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) March 4, 2024

‘He got on a 4.15am taxi this morning and six o’clock flight to be here today so I do appreciate it.’

De Minaur, defended his Mexican Open title after defeating the Norwegian Casper Ruud in Acapulco on Saturday – but in a sign of his devotion to his girlfriend, De Minaur skipped the Acapulco after-party because of his 6am flight which saw him make Boulter’s final.

De Minaur described their triumphs in WTA finals as a ‘pretty good week’ – especially seeing how Boulter fought back to win in San Diego.

Last month, De Minaur opened up on how difficult it is being away from girlfriend Boulter on Valentine’s Day.

The Australian No 1 was playing at the Rotterdam Open at the time.

‘That’s the tough part of the tennis tours, that we didn’t get to spend some of these special days together,’ de Minaur had noted ruefully in an interview with the ATP, saying how he had fancied a romantic dinner.

He took to Instagram last month to post a photo of the pair together in Capri, writing the caption: ‘Happy Valentine’s Katie Boulter. Can we go back already!?’

Boulter posted on her own Instagram story a photo of the couple together with the caption: ‘My valentine’.

Boulter ’embarrassed’ boyfriend De Minaur by thanking him for coming to watch her play

De Minaur won the Mexican Open title in Acapulco on Saturday by beating Casper Ruud

Boulter beat the Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk (pictured) 5-7 6-2 6-2 in San Diego on Sunday

Boulter, from Leicester, has had a flying start to the 2024 season and the victory over Kostyuk sees her break into the top 30 for the first time, now ranked 27th.

The Brit was handed not only a trophy but also a ceremonial surfboard – a nod to the event’s close proximity to the Pacific Ocean. 

Earlier this year the couple – together since 2020 – were described as ‘the Kate and Wills of the Australian tennis season’ when taking part in the Australian Open.

Boulter said in January: ‘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 can’t walk down the street with him separately. I feel like I’m sharing him with everyone, which isn’t a bad thing.

‘I think it’s awesome that he’s getting the attention that he really does deserve. He’s put the work in for it. He’s playing some of the best tennis of his life.

De Minaur recently opened up on how tough it is to spend time away from Boulter on tour 

The British No 1 posted a romantic photo of the couple on Valentine’s Day last month

Boulter and De Minaur have been together since 2020 and often share loved-up pictures

Boulter has admitted she feels she is sharing her boyfriend Alex de Minaur in a ‘circus’

‘It really does fill me with a lot of pride to actually watch him at this moment because I know everything that he’s been through, how hard and how strong he is with everything he does.

‘I think he’s really rubbed off on me in so many different ways: the way he holds himself, the way he works.

‘Having his expertise on the side, it’s great for me because it’s a support. It’s someone that I can talk to about anything, including everything to do with my career.

‘To have that extra support, it does make a huge difference and I feel like it’s showing.’

ncG1vNJzZmhqZGy7psPSmqmorZ6Zwamx1qippZxemLyue82erqxnlaq0prrInmSbp6WYtaK%2Bw2aqrqigpL%2B1v4ybprKeop6yr7CMppisp55iv7awzqWnoWWZo3qiecGioqKmmWKzs7vMZpqappOqu3A%3D