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Elina Svitolina - Wimbledon 2023 and Gael Monfils - Australian Open 2022
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Gael Monfils ‘amazed’ by wife Elina Svitolina’s Wimbledon run


Gael Monfils has revealed how ‘proud’ he is of his wife Elina Svitolina for reaching the semi-finals of Wimbledon, and spoke about his own return to the sport after picking up a wrist injury.

Monfils and Svitolina have been married since July 2021 and their first child, Skai Monfils, arrived in October of last year.

The Ukrainian returned to professional tennis in Charleston, six months after giving birth, narrowly losing her first round match to Yulia Putintseva.

Following a few early defeats, the former No.3 began to find her feet again and reached the semi-final of the Challenger event in Saint Malo, before winning her 17th WTA title in Strasbourg.

Svitolina has since cemented her place back at the top of the sport with deep runs at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, reaching the quarter-final and semi-final respectively.

In the three months since returning, Svitolina has risen from outside the top 1300 to back inside the top 30 and has cemented her place as the top ranked Ukrainian player.

The 28-year-old lost in her Wimbledon semi-final to eventual champion Marketa Vondrousova, and her husband Monfils has reflected on her dream run.

“Just proud of my wife, to be honest,” said Monfils “How much work she has put in to be at that level. How much discipline she had. I was amazed by her strength, mentally, in some matches, to turn them around and then come back for her next match – I was proud and inspired. This is why I feel like a champion right now.”

While Svitolina was at SW19, Monfils was at home looking after his daughter and spoke about that ‘privilege’ while being unable to take to the matchcourt.

“You are at home, but it’s a privilege to spend quality time as well, at home with your child. It can never be too much. It’s going to be a few weeks without her and it’s gonna be tough, but I feel like we will have more time in a few weeks,” explained Monfils.

“It has been an amazing month for me, watching my wife do fantastic, and I have had quality time with my daughter as well, so you know I’m just full of energy.”

Monfils has not played on the ATP tour since his five set victory over Sebastian Baez at his home major, with the Frenchman withdrawing from his second round match due to a wrist injury.

However, the 36-year-old is gearing up for a return this week, “I feel much better. That’s why I’m here actually. I feel like the wrist issue is almost behind me. You know how it is when you come back, you still have to be very careful, so I need to tape my wrist to be sure, and do my rehab.”

Monfils is beginning his US Open hard court swing at the ATP 250 event in Atlanta, with his first round match against Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Gael Monfils matches in 2023

Monfils also had a very disrupted 2022, with a foot injury bringing a premature end to his season at the Montreal Masters 1000 event in August.

The former No.6 returned at Indian Wells this year, and here is how he has performed in the few tournaments he has played in:

Win-loss record: 2-7 (22%)

Indian Wells (ATP 1000) – Lost in the first round to Jordan Thompson, 3-6 1-6

Phoenix (ATP Challenger) – Lost in the first round to Alexander Shevchenko, 4-6 7-6(2) 3-6

Miami (ATP 1000) – Lost in the first round to Ugo Humbert, 3-3 (retired)

Banja Luka (ATP 250) – Lost in the first round to Jiri Lehecka (6), 4-6 3-6

Ostrava (ATP Challenger) – Lost in the second round to Damir Dzumhur (8), 3-6 4-6

Aix en Provence (ATP Challenger) – Lost in the first round to Andy Murray (5), 3-6 2-6

Lyon (ATP 250) – Lost in the first round to Pedro Cachin, 6-2 3-6 4-6

Roland Garros (Grand Slam) – Won his first round match against Sebastian Baez, 3-6 6-3 7-5 1-6 7-5, before withdrawing from the tournament with injury

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Matthew Johns, Tennishead Writer, is a professional tennis journalist with a specialist degree in Sports Journalism. He's a keen tennis player having represented his local club and University plus he's also a qualified tennis coach. Matthew has a deep knowledge of tennis especially the ATP Tour and thrives on breaking big tennis news stories for Tennishead.