Wimbledon star's girlfriend 'has no words' for Carlos Alcaraz tie after prize money lost

British tennis sensation Oliver Tarvet's girlfriend, Helaena Staebler, is fully behind her beau as he prepares to take on reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz in the second round at Wimbledon. The world number 733, who clinched a victory over Switzerland's Leandro Riedi with a straight-sets win of 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, was seen sharing a celebratory kiss with Helaena courtside.

The 21-year-old communications major from St Albans, Herts, will face the formidable Alcaraz on Wednesday. When quizzed by The Mirror about her boyfriend's chances against the Spaniard, 20-year-old Helaena confidently replied: "Yes, I do. I've always believed in him - it's just what you've got to do. Wednesday is going to be really big. I have no words, I haven't even been able to process this just now. It's gonna be amazing, I'm very excited, I'm sure he's very excited as well."

Helaena, a biology student originally from Sacramento, California, has been dating Oliver for over a year after they met at San Diego University. She attributes their successful relationship to strong communication skills, despite their demanding schedules. Discussing Oliver's ranking, she remarked: "He hasn't played a lot of world tournaments - it's been a lot of college matches, so I think that's why he's got this ranking."

Oliver's mum Jenny, an education worker, was over the moon as she embraced her son and husband Garry in a touching display of emotion following the match, lauding his "extraordinary" performance. She said: "I can't believe his focus and determination out there. I haven't seen him serve so well. He was just brilliant. He was so zoned at the end."

Looking ahead to Oliver's upcoming challenge against Alcaraz, she remarked: "There's a massive gap, it's just a question of how big. I'm just looking at how he's going to match up. I just really hope he gives him a game."

Despite not having automatic entitlement to holiday days at work, Jenny shared that her considerate boss granted her a day off to witness today's match, and she remains optimistic about getting another day to support her son at Wimbledon on Wednesday.

Oliver, who enjoyed sponsorship from TK Maxx and Clearpay, both prominently displayed on his sleeves during today's match, has secured a minimum of £99,000 in winnings after his stunning performance.

Yet, due to US college regulations, as a student athlete at the University of San Diego, he is limited to pocketing only $10,000 [£7,300] per annum in prize money. Addressing this during his post-match press conference, Oliver stated: "I will try and do everything I can to make that work out and to find X amount of expenses so I'm under $10,000 of profit. It's something I've got to figure out. Maybe I hire someone to help me out with the expenses, make sure the NCAA are happy. It's very important for me. I have a lot of goals at USD still."

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Under the strict guidelines of the National Collegiate Athletic Association: "In tennis, prior to full-time collegiate enrollment, an individual may accept up to $10,000 per calendar year in prize money based on his or her place finish or performance in open athletics events [events that are not invitation only].

"Once the individual has reached the $10,000 limit in a particular year, he or she may receive additional prize money on a per-event basis, provided such prize money does not exceed the individual's actual and necessary expenses for participation in the event."

Clarifying how he intends to navigate these rules, Oliver detailed: "By December, I need to show that profit or prize money minus expenses equals less than $10,000. Tennis is an expensive sport so, hopefully, I can make that happen... just pay my coaches a little bit extra. I don't know. We'll figure something out."

Lightening the mood, Oliver quipped about travelling in style before reverting to modesty: "Obviously, no, I keep humble. As a kid, it's what you dream of. I came here when I was a little kid. It's what you work for. For it to happen so suddenly has been really special."

Facing the prospect of a second-round clash with the reigning champion Alcaraz, he remarked: "If I do play him, again, I feel like nothing has changed. I've come here and not really set myself any expectations.

"I'm quietly confident that I can win against anyone - Alcaraz isn't an exception to that. I'll just go out there and try and treat it like another match. At the end of the day, for me, I try and play the ball, not the player. Obviously, it's going to be pretty special playing against Alcaraz, potentially on a pretty big court."