After own rebound, Elina Svitolina says sorry for screaming as she hails hubby’s Gael Monfils’ Paris epic
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Ukraine's Elina Svitolina returning to Australian qualifier Storm Hunter at the French Open in Paris on May 31, 2023. She won 2-6, 6-3, 6-1.
PHOTO: AFP
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PARIS – Elina Svitolina battled back from a set and a break down to beat Storm Hunter and reach the third round at the French Open on Wednesday, just 12 hours after her husband Gael Monfils’ late-night escape act.
The Ukrainian, playing at a Grand Slam event for the first time since the 2022 Australian Open, downed Australian qualifier Hunter 2-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Home favourite Monfils claimed his first win in nine months in a five-set first-round thriller against Sebastian Baez, which finished in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
“Yes, I watched him, but not live. I was screaming in my room so if someone heard me, it was me cheering for Gael,” said Svitolina, who was being supported on Court Simonne Mathieu by Monfils.
“It was an unbelievable match and I don’t know what he’s doing here now.
“He should be resting. But I’m very thankful that he came to support me, especially in this tough match.”
The 28-year-old Svitolina only recently returned to the WTA Tour from maternity leave, having also previously taken a break citing health problems and mental exhaustion following Russia’s invasion of her home country.
The former world No. 3 dropped the opening set and was then broken in the third game of the second.
But Svitolina found her form, breaking 204th-ranked Hunter six times in the rest of the match to power to victory.
The three-time French Open quarter-finalist will next face either fifth seed Caroline Garcia or Russian Anna Blinkova, in what would be a repeat of last week’s Strasbourg final won by Svitolina.
Earler, Monfils overcame cramping and a four-game final set deficit in the late-night blockbuster, dubbing himself “totally crazy”.
The 36-year-old crowd-pleaser, who has slumped to 394th in the world rankings after battling a crippling foot injury, defeated Sebastian Baez of Argentina 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 in a first-round tie.
A semi-finalist at Roland Garros back in 2008, Monfils came back from 0-4, 30-40 in the decider to stun an opponent 14 years his junior and ranked 42nd.
“It’s crazy. I talked to myself (after the fourth set), and I said, Don’t you worry, I’ll recover, and I’ll beat him, I’ll kill him during the fifth set,” said Monfils.
“Think about this, I’m totally crazy.”
Monfils could hardly walk in the final set as the intensity of the occasion sparked cramping in both legs. AFP
