It was a dream day at Melbourne Park for tennis power couple Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils, as both overcame world No. 4 opponents to advance to the Round of 16 in the Australian Open.
Monfils kicked off the action with a thrilling four-set victory over fourth-seeded Taylor Fritz. The Frenchman delivered 24 aces in a high-octane match, extending his remarkable winning streak. His hard work didn’t end there—after his match, Monfils swapped his racket for the role of a supportive spectator.
Seated courtside, Monfils cheered on his wife, Elina Svitolina, who faced off against women’s world No. 4 Jasmine Paolini in a packed Margaret Court Arena.
The Ukrainian star stumbled early, losing the first set 6-2. However, she rallied back with an electrifying performance, dominating the second and third sets to seal the match with scores of 2-6, 6-4, 6-0. The victory marked her first top-5 win since defeating world No. 2 Iga Swiatek in 2023 at Wimbledon.
Reflecting on her victory, Svitolina jokingly said, “I would want to say that I got inspired after my husband’s win, but to be fair, I played so bad in the first set, so I’m not sure if I was inspired!” She added with a smile, “I really had to push through. I’m happy with the performance in the end.”
Monfils and Svitolina’s victories added to a day of upsets at the Australian Open, proving their mettle as one of tennis’s most iconic duos.
Up next, Svitolina will face two-time Australian Open quarterfinalist Veronika Kudermetova, while Monfils takes on America’s rising star, Ben Shelton.
