Gael Monfils ‘Feeling Great’ Ahead Of Return As He Gives Update On Wife Elina’s Comeback - UBITENNIS

Gael Monfils ‘Feeling Great’ Ahead Of Return As He Gives Update On Wife Elina’s Comeback

By Adam Addicott
4 Min Read

Former world No.6 Gael Monfils will end his hiatus from the Tour on Wednesday at Indian Wells after being absent from professional tennis for almost seven months. 

The 36-year-old French star has been sidelined from action since injuring his leg at the Canadian Masters last summer. Usually, a long injury break is a frustrating experience for a tennis player but in Monfils’ case, it was also a blessing in disguise. Last October his wife, fellow tennis player Elina Monfils, gave birth to a baby girl called Skaï. 

After enjoying time with his first child who he calls his ‘little princess,’ Monfils is finally back on the Tour. As a result of his absence, he has dropped down to 210th in the world but is eager to climb his way back up the rankings once again.  

“I feel great,” Monfils said during an interview with ATPTour.com. “It’s been a couple months now I’m away. At the same time, I have a couple weeks without my little princess. It’s the first time, it’s the first feeling like that. It’s a mixed feeling, but in a positive way.”

So far in Monfils’ career, he has won 11 Tour titles and earned almost $21M in prize money. He is one of the very few players to have contested at least one Tour final for 18 consecutive seasons (2005-2022) and he has recorded more than 500 victories.

Returning to action has been a long process for Monfils who had to gradually build up his fitness again over the weeks. He initially planned to return during the European indoor swing before his coach said he wouldn’t be ready in time. 

“It’s been a long time. I won’t lie, I missed being on the Tour playing, competing, challenging myself. Now I just have the feeling [of love with the fans]. Actually Indian Wells is great because you have fans very close on the practice court. You can feel the energy,” Monfils said. “That definitely was [exciting] for me the few days I came here. I felt great and I felt lucky and blessed that I could actually get back in shape to experience that again.”

Now he is back on the court, when will Monfils’ partner Elina return? Ukrainian-born Elina (whose maiden name is Svitolina) has been ranked as high as third in the world and has won 17 WTA trophies. She also won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. 

“She’s right there. She’s obviously very motivated to come back. It was actually crazy because she just gave birth and obviously she was super happy, but she really wants to get back very quickly in good shape,” Monfils said. “She wanted to feel that she can play again. She was worried because she hadn’t played for a long time. She picked up the racquet quite good. It was great.
“Now she’s practising, she’s loving it. She’s starting to move a little bit more because at the beginning she couldn’t move so much. But now it’s better and I think she has some goals, so I think she will soon say what she wants to do and when she wants to come back.”

In Indian Wells Monfils will play Jordan Thompson in the first round. 

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