Boulter, De Minaur announce engagement ahead of 2025 season

Tennis' top-ranked power couple is getting married! Days before they'll compete as rivals in the 2025 season-opening United Cup, Katie Boulter and Alex de Minaur announced their engagement.

"We’ve been keeping a small secret," British No.1 Boulter wrote on Instagram Monday alongside a photo of the couple smiling at sunset on a beach near de Minaur's family home in Alicante, Spain -- the city he grew up in from the ages of 5-13 and is the Aussie's European base -- and with the World No.24 sporting an impressive new accessory. 

The long-awaited news from the couple, who have been dating for nearly five years, was warmly celebrated by the tennis family, with former WTA pro and current commentator Laura Robson declaring the reveal as "the best preseason news ever." Paula Badosa, Madison Keys and Denis Shapovalov -- each of whom knows first-hand what it's like to date a fellow tennis pro -- were among the flood of well-wishers, with de Minaur's fellow Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis even quipping: "It's about damn time."

Boulter, 28, and De Minaur, 25, fueled public engagement speculation earlier this week after Boulter posted a photo from the same location with the caption, “Today was a good day,” with one fan even successfully predicting the happy news to come in the comments.

The pair's engagement follows a 2024 season in which they both reached new heights on the court -- Boulter finishing in the Top 25 of the PIF WTA Rankings for the first time, and de Minaur in the ATP's Top 10 -- with each crediting the other for their touring successes. In the spring, the two famously lifted trophies on the same weekend with de Minaur winning in Acapulco for the second year in a row, and then flying to San Diego to watch Boulter capture her first WTA 500 trophy in San Diego.

Later, in June, they lifted trophies on the same day, as the Aussie won in 's-Hertogenbosch and the Brit on home soil in Nottingham.

Hours after the big reveal, Boulter was on court with Jodie Burrage for Team GB's first practice ahead of the United Cup, the mixed-gender tennis team event that kicks off the ATP and WTA seasons. The happy couple will be rivals in Sydney after both their nations were drawn with Argentina in Group F, and will be on opposite sides of the net for the group's final tie on New Year's Day.

It's the second year in a row that Boulter and De Minaur have found themselves opposite each other at the United Cup, and after the Brits defeated the host Aussies 2-1 in last year's pool, Boulter is hoping to keep a firm hold on household "bragging rights."

"I wouldn't say I was thrilled at the idea of playing him all over again," Boulter told reporters after her first practice. "Obviously he's a Top 10 player and he knows how to play tennis, so that's one side of it. Then there's the personal side of it as well, which is difficult but also great for bragging rights. I'm looking forward to the match. It's going to be a great atmosphere. Obviously, playing Australia is always fun. It's a great opportunity for us. We're the underdogs, so let's put the pressure on them.

"We like to throw some banter each other's way. I think we handle it that way as opposed to any other way. We know we support each other. it's such an important start to both of our years. We're both going to do our part for our countries and then at the end of the day we're still going to go home and be together and get through it together."