Australian tennis player Alex de Minaur and his British fiancée, Katie Boulter, have been excluded from the US Open mixed doubles competition, despite their expressed eagerness to compete. The couple was denied a wildcard entry into the tournament, which is set to introduce a new format in 2025 aimed at attracting more top-tier singles players.
In a bid to encourage elite players to pursue doubles success during Grand Slam events, the mixed doubles tournament will take place the week prior to the singles matches and boasts a substantial prize of $1 million (approximately $1.59 million AUD) for the champions. This year’s event comprises 16 teams competing over two days with shortened match formats. The field includes eight teams that secured entry based on their combined singles rankings and another eight that were granted wildcards by the United States Tennis Association.
Unfortunately for de Minaur and Boulter, they did not meet the criteria for direct entry due to their combined ranking being insufficient, and they were later omitted from the final lineup announced at the beginning of the week. The pair, who have previously played doubles together, made a public plea for a wildcard, with de Minaur’s social media post playfully requesting one: “Katie and I would like to ask for a WC pretty, pretty please.”
Currently ranked No. 8 in the ATP rankings, de Minaur recently teamed up with Boulter at Wimbledon’s event, where they enjoyed their first victory together. Meanwhile, Boulter has accepted a wildcard to compete at the WTA’s Tennis in the Land tournament in Cleveland, which overlaps with the mixed doubles event at the US Open.
The highly anticipated tournament will showcase well-known players, including Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka, and Jannik Sinner, alongside some intriguing pairings—most notably, Alcaraz teaming up with Emma Raducanu amid romance speculation from earlier in the year.
The tournament kicks off on Wednesday morning (AEST), with the draw featuring direct entrants such as Jessica Pegula and Jack Draper, and wildcards including Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz among others. Unfortunately, de Minaur and Boulter won’t be among the competitors.