"Monfils withdrew because he was probably too distressed"

Days go by, and still many people cannot believe the separation of Gael Monfils and Elina Svitolina, one of the most iconic couples in tennis. The Ukrainian tennis player decided to part ways with the French legend for various reasons, as she has explained in two statements, which has led to the retirement of the Frenchman before the season ends due to the shock this situation has caused him. Brad Gilbert, former world number 4, has spoken about it, hoping it can be resolved in the future.

We should not forget that Monfils and Svitolina have a daughter together, Skai, and the French tennis player found out about the breakup while he was with her in Dubai, and the Ukrainian player was playing the Asian tour. In fact, some media outlets like 'The Telegraph' indicate that Elina informed Gael of her decision through a call, which left the Frenchman stunned and led to him deciding to retire without competing in Lyon and Paris to have a proper farewell in his last year on the circuit.

“Well, obviously it’s sad. Sad for anyone, for any young couple that goes through something like this. They have a daughter. Gael retired because he was probably very distressed... his last two tournaments were going to be in France, in Lyon and Paris, and he said: ‘That’s it, I’m withdrawing from the anti-doping protocol and retiring.’ I hope they can resolve this privately, confidentially,” the American stated on 'The Big T' of Tennis Channel, who, beyond his career as a tennis player, has also coached André Agassi, Andy Roddick, and Coco Gauff.

Monfils will have his tribute in Paris

Despite having made the decision to retire early, it is expected that the Paris Masters 1000 will pay him the tribute he deserves. It is unknown how Monfils will feel emotionally about appearing publicly in a few weeks, but it will surely do him good to have such a mass gathering for his people to show support and be able to say goodbye after a career full of highlights and great moments, as he is one of the most beloved players in tennis history.

As for his marriage, it is still unclear what will happen in the future, but on social media, Svitolina has been the one to face all the criticism, to the point of having to issue another statement to emphasize that it was not only the war between Ukraine and Russia that led her to make that decision, as there were more reasons she did not want to detail. A complicated situation that arises at a very unfair moment for a Monfils who undoubtedly did not expect the end of his career to come this way.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, "Monfils se retiró porque probablemente estaba demasiado angustiado"