Gael Monfils brought the party to Roland Garros on Thursday, teaming up with his wife Elina Svitolina to win a lively, star-studded exhibition match as he prepared for his final appearance at his home Grand Slam.
Tennis showman Gael Monfils bowed out of his 20th and final Australian Open on Tuesday with a mix of pain and regret as he fell to an injury-hampered 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4, 7-5 defeat in the first round to local qualifier Dane Sweeny.
Jannik Sinner received a favourable French Open draw while Novak Djokovic faces a challenging path. Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka are set for a possible semi-final clash at Roland Garros.
Elina Svitolina of Ukraine defeated Coco Gauff in the Italian Open final, signalling her ambitions for the upcoming French Open.
The French Open will increase its prize money by 9.5% this year, bringing the total purse to 61.7 million euros. This increase reflects a broader trend of Grand Slam tournaments boosting player earnings, particularly in the early rounds, amid ongoing discussions about revenue distribution in tennis.
Gael Monfils thrilled the Roland Garros crowd with his 12th five-set victory at the French Open on Tuesday before revealing that he does not enjoy having to dig himself out of deep holes at Grand Slams.
The free-swinging Monfils broke Draper's serve in the fourth set as the clock moved past 11pm local time and saved five break points in an epic seventh game to move 5-2 ahead.
Russian star Daniil Medvedev and Indian veteran Rohan Bopanna will play in the same squad, while Sumit Nagal is part of a side that features former world number 6 Gael Monfils for the World Tennis League, to be held In Bengaluru from December 17 to 20.
Elina Svitolina was tested by China's Wang Xinyu in the Auckland Open final on Sunday but came through 6-3, 7-6(6) to kick off her new season with her 19th WTA title.
Elina Svitolina said the supportive presence of husband Gael Monfils meant a lot after the tennis power couple made shockwaves in sync
-French flair topped American firepower as Gael Monfils turned back the clock to dump fourth seed Taylor Fritz out of the Australian Open on Saturday and celebrate his place in the last 16 with a dance on court.
Images from Day 7 of the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Saturday.
Sumit Nagal leaned on his vast experience to overcome the power game of Kites's Dhakshineswar Suresh in the tie-break and keep Eagles well on course for the World Tennis League final, in Bengaluru, on Thursday.
The event comes at a time when tennis is facing criticism over its relentless tour schedule.
World No 30 has Monfils stepped in to replace injured Fabien Reboul
Former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, Australian Nick Kyrgios and 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina, are set to enthrall fans in India when the World Tennis League makes its debut, in Bengaluru, on December 17.
Jannik Sinner overcame a debilitating medical episode as well as Dane Holger Rune to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for the third time.
Talk about a man in a hurry -- 10th seed Ben Shelton required just 55 seconds to finish off Australian Rinky Hijikata and reach the Wimbledon third round on Friday.
'She said YES Madame MONFILS @elisvitolina #July2021 (XV)(III)', the Frenchman captioned a picture with Svitolina donning a sizable diamond ring and Monfils in the background.
The couple, who got engaged in April this year, have been dating since 2018.
Monfils, 35, reached the last four at the 2008 French Open and repeated the feat eight years later at the 2016 US Open but has never reached a Grand Slam final.
Monfils was playing in his first match in nearly seven months after the season resumed following the COVID-19 hiatus.
Images from Day 10 of the 2025 French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on Tuesday.
13 of the men's seeds fell at the first hurdle -- a Wimbledon record since 32 seeds were introduced in 2001.
Images from Day 3 of the 2025 Australian Open in Melbourne on Tuesday.
'I cannot serve, I make mistakes ... I do not feel right and it shows.'
Djokovic first played Monfils at the US Open in 2005 but Tuesday's match was only their second encounter on clay and he needed only one break point to clinch the first set.
Shapovalov will meet Rafael Nadal for a place in the semi-finals.
Zverev cruised past home favorite Roberto Bautista Agut 6-2, 6-2, while Sabalenka triumphed over qualifier Anna Blinkova 6-3, 6-4.
'I've been a little bit shocked this week with how players have been treated by the broadcaster.'
Three-time champion Novak Djokovic battled past Frenchman Corentin Moutet in a match that lasted more than three hours on Thursday.
In the decider, Berrettini broke twice for a 4-2 lead but a rejuvenated Monfils dug deep and raced around the court to fight off three match points to force a final-set tiebreak. But it was Berrettini who leaned on his powerful serve to prevail and become the fourth Italian man to reach a Grand Slam semi-final in the Open Era.
Novak Djokovic won 12 of the last 14 games of his match against Lorenzo Musetti to crush the Italian 6-2, 6-2 and move into the quarter-finals of the Miami Open in his best performance since the Australian Open.
Monfils said all players were not similarly equipped to deal with the pressure of being a top athlete.
Madison Keys was dumped out of the Miami Open third round on Sunday, falling 6-4, 6-2 to Philippine wild card Alexandra Eala
Australian Nick Kyrgios came from behind to defeat Mackenzie McDonald 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the Miami Open on Wednesday to earn his first win since October 2022.
Learner Tien became the youngest man to reach the Australian Open fourth round in 20 years
Carlos Alcaraz has vowed to learn from the incident and ensure it doesn't happen again
Djokovic, playing his first tournament for six months because of an elbow problem, dropped his opening two service games and although he battled back to break Monfils twice he wavered again as scrappy opener went his opponents' way.
World number three Roger Federer is playing his first tournament on clay for three years as he prepares for the French Open.
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