09-03-2025
Djokovic makes sad announcement as Alex de Minaur suffers Katie Boulter heartbreak
Alex de Minaur's hopes of going deep at Indian Wells alongside fiancee Katie Boulter have been dashed, after Boulter suffered a demoralising loss in the second round on Sunday. The British star was thrashed by World No.7 Elena Rybakina, and looked completely out of sorts.
Boulter was blown off the court as she lost the first set 6-0, and although she was much better in the second she was broken while serving for the set and succumbed 7-5. Boulter came into Indian Wells having not played since the Australian Open due to a foot injury. She managed to come back and beat Irina-Camelia Begu in three sets in the first round, but couldn't match it with grand slam champion Rybakina on Sunday.
Boulter had played doubles with de Minaur in an exhibition 'Tie Break Tens' event before Indian Wells kicked off, and looked to have put the foot injury behind her. But the World No.38 didn't appear to be at full fitness in her loss to Rybakina.
Indian Wells marks one of the rare tournaments where the men's and women's events are held at the same time. It usually only occurs at the grand slams, but Indian Wells holds its ATP and WTA events concurrently.
It means de Minaur and Boulter get to spend some quality time together, but they've never managed to both make a deep run at tournaments they play at the same time. The British player is yet to make it past the third round of a grand slam despite a meteoric rise up the rankings in the last two years.
As for de Minaur, the Aussie star breezed past David Goffin 6-2 6-2 on Saturday to make the third round. After a first-round bye, the World No.10 scored his seventh-straight victory over Goffin in just 73 minutes to kick off his tournament in dominant style.
De Minaur is looking to surge back up the rankings after recently falling from a career-high No.6. His cause has been boosted by shock early losses for Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic, Casper Ruud and Andrey Rublev.
Zverev (2), Djokovic (7), Ruud (5) and Rublev (8) are all ranked above de Minaur, meaning the Aussie has a golden opportunity if he can make the later rounds at Indian Wells. With World No.1 Jannik Sinner suspended, the only players ranked higher than de Minaur who are still in action are Carlos Alcaraz (3), Taylor Fritz (4), Daniil Medvedev (6) and Stefanos Tsitsipas (9).
As for Djokovic, the 24-time grand slam champion's worrying form slump continued in a shock loss to Botic van de Zandschulp. After making the semi-finals at the Australian Open and being forced to retire hurt, Djokovic has now lost his first matches at the Qatar Open (to Matteo Berrettini) and Indian Wells.
The 37-year-old insists his hamstring isn't bothering him despite tearing it in Melbourne, but offered a bleak assessment of his play after Saturday's loss. There's renewed speculation about how much longer Djokovic will play before he retires, and his words on Saturday were rather concerning for fans.
"Things are obviously different for me in the last couple of years. I've been struggling to play on the desired level," said the Serb. "Every now and then, I have a couple good tournaments, but mostly it's really a challenge. It's a struggle for me."
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Djokovic hasn't won a grand slam since the US Open in 2023, and outside of winning gold at the Paris Olympics he didn't win a title throughout all of 2024. He's currently stuck on 99 career titles, but will look to bounce back at the upcoming Miami Open.
