Taylor Fritz’s influencer girlfriend Morgan Riddle may be regretting her Instagram vow
Taylor Fritz is through to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for the first time – and that has triggered an unpleasant outcome for his influencer girlfriend Morgan Riddle.
American Fritz claimed a landmark victory over last year’s runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas in Melbourne, as he came away with a 7-6 (3) 5-7 6-3 6-3 triumph to book a last-eight clash with Novak Djokovic.
Fritz will need to achieve another first if he is to go further having lost all eight previous meetings with Djokovic, including a painful five-set defeat in the third round three years ago when the Serbian suffered an abdominal injury mid-match.
Fritz was thrilled with his performance, saying: “I’m really happy. I think start to finish I played really well. Especially I’m super happy about the way I finished it. The last three games of the match I really, really turned it on, almost like I was in a trance and everything.
“I just felt good. I felt like I knew exactly what shot to hit, the right decision to make on every ball. It’s great. It’s been a while since I’ve had that feeling, so it gives me a lot of confidence.”
Amid his joy on court, Fritz didn’t miss the moment to remind his girlfriend Morgan that she is now set for a test of her own due to a comment she made on the social media platform prior to the Tsitsipas match.
Riddle has over 221k followers on Instagram and she announced that she would eat an entire jar of Vegemite, the Australian food spread made from leftover brewers’ yeast extract with various vegetable and spice additives.
During his on-court interview after the victory against Tsitsipas, a jar of Vegemite was brought out on court, but the size of it did not appear to be to Morgan’s liking.
She clearly had visions of eating a smaller jar of the spreak, but Fritz insisted there was no turing back on her promise.
“My girlfriend thought I was too confident to win the match,” said the American.
“This is a big jar but a bet’s a bet. I have tried it, but I’m not the biggest fan so I won’t be partaking. I’ll make sure it happens.”
READ MORE: Taylor Fritz responds to Novak Djokovic’s comments ahead of Australian Open showdown
Morgan’s Vegemite moment is certain to get plenty of views on Instagram, with her popularity on the socia media platform boosted by her prominent role in the Netflix show, Break Point.
Fritz spoke to Tennis365 about his role in that series last year, as he suggested the exposure for the sport on such a big platform is vital to grow it’s popularity.
“Tennis has to do a better job in telling those stories and spreadring the message,” Fritz told Tennis365.
“If you look at F1 now for example, people are captivated by F1 because Drive to Survive did an amazing job of letting people into that world and told the stories of the drivers.
“Now the fans feel more connected than ever because they know the man under the helmet, and because of that they feel more invested.
“I grew up gaming a lot (still do) and watching YouTube videos and YouTube creators, so I know how many alternative entertainment options there are out there for young people.
“We as a sport have to figure out how to better reach that audience and bring a younger crowd into tennis. I don’t know what the answer is, but we have to make some changes to find a better balance between the great traditions of tennis, which I love and value, and what that new audience is looking for.”
When he reflected on his role in the Netflix docuseries, Fritz revealed the behind-the-scenes film he starred in alongside partner Morgan was enjoyable.
“Now the fans feel more connected than ever because they know the man under the helmet, and because of that they feel more invested,” he added.
“I grew up gaming a lot (still do) and watching YouTube videos and YouTube creators, so I know how many alternative entertainment options there are out there for young people.
“We as a sport have to figure out how to better reach that audience and bring a younger crowd into tennis. I don’t know what the answer is, but we have to make some changes to find a better balance between the great traditions of tennis, which I love and value, and what that new audience is looking for.”
