British tennis player Katie Boulter cheers "handsome" boyfriend Alex de Minaur by celebrating his birthday after his Rotterdam upset

Alex de Minaur’s birthday on Friday, February 17, didn’t go as planned on the court, as the Australian suffered a brutal loss in the quarterfinals of the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam.

Alex de Minaur successfully defended his 2022 quarterfinal appearance at the tournament by pulling off a phenomenal upset over World No. 5 Andrey Rublev and subsequently beating Maxime Cressy. The World No. 25, however, was in for disappointment yet again, as his dream of a semifinal spot was shattered by 2018 Rotterdam runner-up Grigor Dimitrov in a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(6) defeat.

Not only did Alex de Minaur suffer the loss despite having two match points in his favor, he unfortunately incurred it on his 24th birthday.

"Definitely not the best Birthday present I could’ve had….. Still thanks everyone for the Bday wishes," he tweeted after the loss.

While the Australian athlete was expectedly upset by the loss, his girlfriend, British tennis player Katie Boulter, made her best effort to cheer him up. She later on posted pictures of the two together on social media, wishing the “handsome” man a happy birthday.

“Older but no wiser. Happy birthday guapo (handsome),” she wrote on Instagram.

Alex de Minaur and Katie Boulter made their relationship public in 2021, and have been proudly supporting each other in person as well as on social media ever since. The adorable couple recently shared loving messages for each other on Valentine’s Day.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” Alex de Minaur wrote on Instagram, adding a heart emoji.

“My forever valentine,” Katie Boulter reciprocated.

The couple on Instagram

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Alex de Minaur's 2023 season so far

The Australian at the 2023 United Cup

Alex de Minaur has had mixed results during the early days of the 2023 season. The Australian kicked off his season by representing his country in the inaugural edition of the United Cup. De Minaur played two matches in the tournament, losing one to Cameron Norrie and earning a career-highlight win against Rafael Nadal.

“It's one of those wins that, you know, it's one of those achievements that you have unlocked in your career. But also, it's a big win for myself, one that I really needed," he said of the win against the legendary Spaniard.

The home favorite next made a great start at the Australian Open, winning his opening-round clash against Taiwanese tennis player Hsu Yu-hsiou. He then registered victories over Frenchmen Adrian Mannarino and Benjamin Bonzi in the second and third rounds of the tournament, respectively. His happiness, however, was short-lived as he crashed out in straight sets in the following round against eventual champion Novak Djokovic.

After his latest quarterfinal exit at the ongoing tournament in Rotterdam, the 24-year-old is scheduled to feature in the Open 13 tournament in Marseille, France, to be held from February 20-26.