Love is in the air at Wimbledon as players hook up - but beware the fallout after Nick Kyrgios' 'banged your girlfriend' spat with Stan Wawrinka
The typical discourse of forehands, backhands, wins and losses was swapped out for foreplay innuendo when Paula Badosa took to the press conference room recently.
'Yeah, well, I was injured in Australia. I watched his match, the final. Of course I had jet lag because I was in Spain. I decided to watch that match,' she said, explaining a dream she had had about tennis star boyfriend Stefanos Tsitsipas.
'Surprising, because I never dream about tennis players, but I dreamt about him that night, that we were both winning Australian Open. Then it was like we were having a very romantic moment, but I'm not going to explain. I'm just going to leave it there. (Laughter).'
Badosa's sex dream was the talk of the tournament for a day or two, with her and Tsitsipas dubbed the power couple of the ATP and WTA Tours.
Tennis stars coupling up is nothing new.
The relentless nature of the Tour means dating a fellow player - or in some cases a coach - is extremely convenient.
Tsitsipas and Badosa are in the honeymoon phase, rarely apart at Wimbledon as they shared loved up posts from the grounds and from around London before both were eliminated from this year's tournament.
British No 1 Katie Boulter is another dating a tennis star in Australia's Alex de Minaur. Love, as they say, seems to be in the air among the players.
'It's convenient for a lot of players,' one source told Mail Sport. 'At some tournaments they have player parties where they can mingle with each other.'
Other couples prominent on the tour are British pair Eden Silva and Liam Broady, Denis Shapovalov and Mirjam Bjorklund, and Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils.
Petra Kvitova, who is engaged to her coach Jiri Vanek, is another, while former Wimbledon champion - and now retired - Ash Barty married her long-time hitting partner.
As for those on dating apps, the Sun revealed last week how Venus Williams, a five-time Wimbledon champion, is on Raya.
On her profile she had several glamarous photos of herself, including a photo dressed in her tennis whites.
What Badosa's revelation did do was cast a brighter spotlight on the sex lives of tennis' top stars, however.
'A lot of these players are too disciplined to be bed-hopping,' a source added. 'It's not really a thing.'
That is not to say it doesn't happen - and one of the great scandals in the past few years was Stan Wawrinka and Nick Kyrgios having to be separated in a locker room clash after the outspoken Aussie taunted his rival over then-girlfriend Donna Vekic.
Wawrinka and Kyrgios had to be forcibly separated after their infamous showdown at the 2015 Canadian Open, a tennis official sensationally revealed.
Kyrgios made a vile on-court comment to Wawrinka about Vekic,telling Wawrinka, 'Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend. Sorry to tell you that, mate.'
Kyrgios' comments were picked up on TV because of the microphones on the court and afterwards, Wawrinka tweeted: 'What was said I wouldn't say to my worst enemy. To stop so low is not only unacceptable but also beyond belief.'
His remark referred to his close friend Thanasi Kokkinakis and an alleged night of passion with Vekic, although his friend was left with 'sleepless nights' following the row.
But, undeterred, some are still seeking more and more, so much so that an adult creator offered up £77,000 for Badosa and Tsitsipas to share explicit content.
My.Club vice president Mike Ford, in a letter to the couple following their Wimbledon exits, made the audacious pitch.
He wrote: 'Dear Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa, I saw the unfortunate news that you had to pull out of competing in this year's mixed doubles competition at Wimbledon.
'Tennis fans everywhere are disappointed they won't be able to see tennis's latest 'it' couple competing together on the same court pounding balls and drilling serves.
'To make up for the purse you missed out on - and more importantly, provide fans with some exclusive behind-the-scenes action.
'I'd like to offer you up to $100,000 (£77,000) to set up accounts and share joint content on My.Club, the adult subscription platform for content creators and post regularly (at least three times per week for one full year).'
As for now, there has been no reply.
But dating in the world of tennis is not for everyone, and that goes for Heather Watson.
The Brit once dated doubles ace Lloyd Glasspool - and many fans will recall a topless Glasspool wrestling his then-girlfriend in a video shared from home - but it would not last and it put Watson off tennis stars for life.
Speaking back in 2019 to You magazine, Watson labelled the pair's relationship as a 'passionate and intense' two-year affair.
Asked if she would date another player, she said emphatically: 'Hell, no! It's just too tough. I would never mix business with pleasure again.'
Watson's first serious relationship was with junior tennis player turned banker Phil Stephens in 2015.
If anything, Wimbledon has proven, allegedly, to be more of an aphrodisiac for spectators rather than players, who, a source says, are 'locked in' to the competition for one of the year's biggest tournaments.
Last year the Mail reported how Wimbledon officials were cracking down on couples who plan to use the London venue's quiet room as a not-so-secret rendezvous spot.
Tournament bosses warned spectators that the secluded 'sanctuary' space near Court 12 was to be kept under a watchful eye for the 2023 tournament — 12 months after numerous couples were said to be caught using it as a spot.
'It's a really important space. So, we will be retaining it and we'll be making sure that people are using it the right way,' Sally Bolton, chief executive of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, told The Telegraph.
'If people need space to go to pray, it's the quiet space for that. There is an opportunity to breastfeed in there. But, we are looking for it to be used in the right way.'
The Wimbledon website describes the facility as 'a space where guests can retreat for a moment of private meditation, prayer or reflection or simply to escape the crowds around the grounds.'
Each prayer room is equipped with two armchairs, a foldaway table and phone-charging facilities.
Furthermore, flyers in Wimbledon park from residents read: 'Game Sex and Match NO THANKS!', a not-so-subtle nod to those frolicking in the queue to get into the grounds when queues can involve overnight camping.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiYWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmRhaWx5bWFpbC5jby51ay9zcG9ydC90ZW5uaXMvYXJ0aWNsZS0xMjI4NzYxNS9Mb3ZlLWFpci1XaW1ibGVkb24tcGxheWVycy1ob29rLXVwLmh0bWzSAWVodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvc3BvcnQvdGVubmlzL2FydGljbGUtMTIyODc2MTUvYW1wL0xvdmUtYWlyLVdpbWJsZWRvbi1wbGF5ZXJzLWhvb2stdXAuaHRtbA?oc=5
2023-07-15 08:34:39Z
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