For her 38th birthday on April 19, 2025, Maria Sharapova returned to Tokyo, a city etched in her memory since her first WTA victory in 2003. Joined by fiancé Alexander Gilkes, a passionate art entrepreneur fascinated by street culture, he once said, “I’m very interested in the emergence of street culture as it is without doubt one of, if not the most, disruptive and transformative forces in today’s contemporary art world.” Together, they embraced Tokyo’s blend of tradition and innovation. Sharapova once called it “magical” and hoped to return for cherry blossoms, but her birthday week soon took an unexpected twist.
For Sharapova’s 38th birthday, Gilkes posted a sweet Instagram story from their dinner at Sugalabo in Japan, where the former tennis champ posed with her cake, looking every bit the birthday queen. But the real fun began the next morning, when Sharapova revealed just how far she’d go for love: “Woke me up at 4am…to go to the fish market,” she deadpanned, documenting Gilkes’ excitement and her own sleepy sass as they trekked to Tokyo’s legendary Toyosu tuna auction.
Her Instagram stories from April 20 captured her signature dry wit in full force. As Gilkes bounced along, eager to snap photos of the massive tuna, Sharapova trudged behind, her caption reading, “How I feel about it.” After enduring the chaos of the auction floor, she finally celebrated breakfast with a sigh of relief, ending her story with, “Ahhh The exit sign.” Their playful banter and willingness to embrace each other’s interests—even at 4 a.m.—make their relationship a joy for fans to follow.
Despite her mock complaints, early mornings aren’t exactly new for Sharapova. The five-time Grand Slam winner has spent years waking up at dawn for training, and she even snapped a gym mirror selfie at 5:30 a.m. on her birthday, writing, “The only jet lag I accept is in Tokyo. And if it’s at a gym at 5:30 am, preferably the @aman_tokyo.” Clearly, old habits die hard, and her dedication to fitness never takes a holiday—even when she’s celebrating another year around the sun.
Looks like it was just her fiancé’s turn to pick an adventure. After all, the couple have been together since 2018, got engaged in 2020, and welcomed their son Theodore in July 2022. So what’s next for them?
Maria Sharapova on her wedding plans with Alexander Gilkes
The five-time Grand Slam champion is loving her new chapter. Four years into retirement, she’s swapped the relentless grind of tennis for the joys (and chaos!) of raising her two-year-old son, Theodore, with her fiancé. “I don’t know if any woman ever knows when it’s time to step into a new phase or motherhood, but I feel like I made the choice at the right time,” she told she spoke to People Magazine in June 2024. “I feel like I have a healthy distance from tennis. I was ready for a new chapter in life.”
As for wedding plans, Sharapova wasn’t rushing. She laughed off the idea, explaining, “We were going to have a big wedding and then I got pregnant, and so we hadn’t actually scheduled a new wedding yet. Perhaps in the next couple of years.” Both she and Gilkes were so busy that wedding planning took a backseat. “Yeah. We’re not in a rush,” she said with a grin.
Despite their busy family life, both Sharapova and Gilkes maintained demanding careers. She invested in ventures like Cofertility, served on Moncler’s board, managed her candy brand Sugarpova, and kept partnerships with Nike and Porsche. Gilkes co-founded Squared Circles, a sustainability-focused venture studio, and contributed as a freelance writer for British Vogue. They even worked together, with Maria advising Squared Circles. No wonder wedding plans were on hold!
The couple balanced work with plenty of travel, splitting time between Los Angeles and Miami, and spending summers in Europe. With so much going on, fans were left wondering if Sharapova’s next surprise would be a spontaneous wedding or another fun adventure. What do you think?
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