Venus Williams’ fiancé Andrea Preti hypes up Reilly Opelka with uplifting message after American pulls off shock upset at Cincinnati Open

Venus Williams’ fiance, Andrea Preti, was closely watching the incredible tennis match between Reilly Opelka and World No. 8 Alex de Minaur on Sunday in the Cincinnati Masters. Opelka pulled off a stunning upset win against the Australian, 7-6(8-6), 6-4, in the second round of the tournament.

Ad

On Sunday, Preti reposted a highlight of the match in which Opelka returned a serve from Alex de Minaur with a powerful down-the-line smash to win a point in the tiebreaker. At that moment, the tiebreaker was even at 5-5. Preti, watching the game closely, shared the moment on Instagram stories with a hyped-up reaction:

“Let’s gooo Reilly Opelka.”

Ad

Trending

The Australian had seven break-point opportunities in the match, but Opelka stood his ground and didn't let his opponent convert any of them. On the other hand, the one time de Minaur's serve was threatened to be broken was in the second set, and Opelka grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Andrea Preti's fiancee Venus Williams gets knocked out in the first round of the Cincinnati Open

Venus Williams, who returned to competitive tennis with the DC Open, earned a wild card entry into the Cincinnati Open. However, the 45-year-old tennis legend, who was out of action for 16 years due to health issues, was knocked out in the first round with a straight-sets defeat to Spain’s rising star Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, 6-4, 6-4. It was match No. 1,099 of her storied career.

Williams was trailing 1-4 at one point in the first set of the match. However, she made it back into the contest by winning three consecutive games. It was not enough as the Spaniard was too much of a challenge for Williams to overcome. After the match, Venus Williams said:

“Right now it’s hard for me to be upset. Of course, I want to win the match, but it’s hard for me to be [sad]. If you’re on tour, day in, day out and you lose a match, you’re like: ‘Man, I had some chances.’ I know that I lost this match because I just need more matches. After this match, I’m just thinking: ‘OK, what am I going to work on?’ instead of: ‘Gosh, I screwed that up.’"

“Yes, I could have played better," Venus Williams added. "But the thing I feel good about is that I did go for it. No one dunked on my head. She definitely had some great shots, but I went for it, and sometimes they didn’t land, and sometimes she had some great shots. But it’s not that I didn’t know what to do. It’s just that I need to keep working on it.”

With this result, Venus now shifts her focus to the US Open, where she’s slated to compete in mixed doubles alongside Reilly Opelka.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback

About the author

Krutik Jain

Krutik Jain is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. It was in 2018 when the baseball bug bit Krutik, and already a cricket fan, he credits baseball's rules and Clayton Kershaw's pitching to have hooked him to the game.

A Kershaw and Mookie Betts fan, Krutik rates his favorite team LA Dodgers triumphing over Tampa Bay Rays in the 2020 World Series as his best baseball moment so far. His answer to the perennial "one player from the past you could meet" question is Jackie Robinson. Despite never having seen him play, Robinson's impact, legacy and trail-blazing journey have left an indelible impact on Krutik.

A rigorous fact-checker, Krutik likes reporting on the technical aspects of the game as well as off-field elements. When not watching baseball, Krutik is busy playing cricket, staying up to date with the happenings around the world and hiking.

Know More