"I would not like to miss the Olympics, it would be my last one": Monfils has one final focus as attention shifts after becoming a father

Gael Monfils is targeting an appearance at the Paris 2024 Olympics with retirement possibly coming after that event.

Monfils is getting up there in age and it makes it very hard to compete with the increasing number of young talents that are coming through. His hope is to be able to play at the 2024 Paris Olympics where the top-ranked players from each country will play.

To ensure that, Monfils will need to have a huge year in 2023:

“2023 is an important year for me, a year of transition, transition between my injuries and the fact to be competitive to try to qualify for Paris 2024. I would not like to miss the Olympics, it would be my last one."

Read also

Swiatek starts preparation for 2023 season after short time off: "I have already found my inner motivation"

He is quite certain that retirement would not come that long after:

“I hope that 2024 would not be my last year but maybe the one after that. Before, I said that I wanted to play until I’m 40 but the more time I spend with my daughter, the more time I’m thinking maybe I’ll play a bit less.”

He won't start next year in Australia though as he will skip it to become eligible for protected ranking:

“I know that there is a protected ranking, when you don’t play for a certain amount of months. I know that if I take it, I have to not play the Australian Open to reach the six months needed and that will be my decision."

Read also

Kyrgios on reasoning behind Diriyah Tennis Cup appearance: "I love travelling to places where you don't know much about tennis, and trying to draw attention to the sport"