Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez announced their split in April after a two-year engagement.
And on Friday, Australian TV presenter Belinda Russell revealed she had received a direct message on Instagram from the former New York Yankees star.
The Today Extra host, 42, said the baseball legend, 45, got in touch to praise her ‘great feed’ after she posted a video of herself dancing in the Channel Nine studio.
Fancy that! Australian TV presenter Belinda Russell (right, with Richard Wilkins) revealed on Friday she had received a direct message on Instagram from J.Lo’s ex-fiancé Alex Rodriguez
‘You’ve had somewhat of a celebrity encounter,’ Belinda’s co-host Richard Wilkins said.
‘An A-list star has slid into your direct messages on what… Instagram?’ he added.
Belinda, who is also a well-known TikTok personality, confirmed: ‘I woke up this morning, checking the socials and in my requests there was a message from Alex Rodriguez. As in A-Rod. As in J.Lo’s ex.’
Friendly: The Today Extra host, 42, said the baseball legend (pictured) got in touch to praise her ‘great feed’ after she posted a video of herself dancing in the Channel Nine studio
Sliding into her DMs: A-Rod messaged the married mother of three to say: ‘Great feed!!!’
Captured his attention: ‘All I can say is… he likes great content. He just said great feed!’ Belinda said afterwards, downplaying her celebrity encounter
Today Extra then showed a screenshot of the direct message, in which A-Rod simply wrote: ‘Great feed!!!’
‘All I can say is… he likes great content, Dickie. He just said great feed!’ Belinda said, downplaying her celebrity encounter.
‘I went, “This can’t be real,” so I tapped on it and [his account] is verified,’ she added.
‘If you count [there’s] four million followers. Give me a shout-out, A-Rod, and get me some followers!’
Innocent: When asked whether A-Rod was ‘hitting on her’, Belinda clarified it was simply a bit of banter and that she’s happily married with three children
When Richard asked whether A-Rod was ‘hitting on her’, Belinda clarified it was simply a bit of banter and that she’s happily married with three children.
‘He’s surely not [hitting on me]. He just likes my videos… I’m very happily married,’ she told viewers.
Later in the program, a somewhat embarrassed Belinda joked that A-Rod was ‘going to unfollow me now because this is so uncool. He just likes the videos that I do.’
Family: Belinda is pictured with her husband, Mark Calvert, and their children
J.Lo and A-Rod announced their split in April, saying they were ‘better as friends’.
In a joint statement released to the American Today show, they said of their decision to split: ‘We have realised we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so.
‘We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects. We wish the best for each other and each other’s children.’
High-profile split: J.Lo and A-Rod announced their split in April, saying they were ‘better as friends’. Pictured on February 24, 2019, in Los Angeles
At the time of their split, it was revealed Jennifer and Alex were focusing on their children – Jennifer’s 13-year-old twins Emme and Max, and Alex’s daughters, Natasha, 16, and Ella, 13 – as they have all grown close.
The pair had to postpone their wedding twice due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Alex previously said on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: ‘We tried twice in 2020. We got bit twice by Covid-19. You know, they say in baseball, third time’s the charm, so let’s hope.
‘It’s been such a crazy year for her. So amazing. So many blessings. In the span of 12 months, she’s done the Super Bowl, New Year’s, the inaugural.’
Challenges: Jennifer and Alex had to postpone their wedding twice due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured on May 7, 2018, in New York City