Taylor Fritz's girlfriend Morgan Riddle: "Some people in the tennis community hate me, they think I’m the worst thing to ever happen to the sport"
Taylor Fritz's girlfriend Morgan Riddle has opened up about encountering animosity from certain sections of the tennis community.
Riddle has become a mainstay at tennis tournaments around the world, regularly traveling to support Fritz during his matches. As a social media influencer, the 26-year-old has capitalized on this opportunity, curating engaging tennis-related content on various platforms to increase the sport's reach and popularity.
Despite garnering appreciation from many fans, she has also been subjected to hate, social media abuse, and criticism from what she previously described as the "older, more misogynist side of the tennis fan base" that she hoped to win over.
During a recent appearance on the 'Sportsish' podcast, Taylor Fritz's girlfriend Morgan Riddle candidly discussed being despised by a segment of the tennis community who viewed her as detrimental to the sport.
"Some people in the tennis community like hate me, hate me, hate me. They just think I’m the worst thing to ever happen to the sport which is fine," she said (at 35:58).
However, Riddle also highlighted the strong community of support she had cultivated by filling a niche that people didn't even know there was a demand for.
"But then, on the other side of it, I do have a very strong community in the tennis community. Like, it definitely took time but I also think because I was the first person to offer that perspective of the tour and it was something that now I know people had just been waiting for, maybe they didn’t even know that they wanted that side of it," she said.
"But I have a great community in the tennis community. There’s so many of them that are so supportive of everything that I do," Riddle added.
Riddle then called attention to her groundbreaking partnerships with tournaments in an official capacity, like her role as the host for 'Wimbledon Threads,' the official lifestyle and fashion series of the grasscourt Major.
She also disclosed that she was in talks with Wimbledon to reprise her role with a new angle.
"And me working with the tournaments on an official capacity, that was a big deal for a partner to do that. And people were so supportive of it in a lot of ways. It’s great," Taylor Fritz's girlfriend said.
"I don’t know if we’re going to do it again this year just because, we would have to figure out a different angle for it but we’re talking about it so we’ll figure out something for this year. So, I’m excited," she added.
Taylor Fritz to take on Tommy Paul in Delray Beach Open final
Taylor Fritz is currently competing at the 2024 Delray Beach Open as the top seed and defending champion. The American has booked his place in the final with wins over the likes of Nuno Borges, Rinky Hijikata, and Marcos Giron.
Fritz will lock horns with Tommy Paul in a blockbuster title clash at the ATP 250 event. The final was set to take place on Sunday, February 18. However, both the singles and doubles finals were postponed to Monday due to inclement weather.
Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul stand level at 2-2 in their head-to-head record. However, it was Paul who emerged victorious in their most recent encounter in the 2023 Acapulco semifinal, winning 6-3, 6-7(2), 7-6(2).