“Tennis is cool, but my dream is out there”: Gael Monfils dismisses Grand Slam title hopes

Gael Monfils spoke about his priorities after advancing to the fourth round of the Australian Open, stating that winning a Grand Slam title is not his dream. The 38-year-old player stunned World No. 4 Taylor Fritz in the third round and is on an impeccable run with 8 consecutive wins.

Some are already seeing Monfils as a potential surprise, and it doesn't seem far-fetched—if he maintains his high level from the first week of competition—that he could make it to the later rounds of the tournament. Does Monfils believe he could claim a major title at this stage of his career?

Monfils discusses family goals

The former World No. 6 reached the fourth round of the Aussie Open for the 6th time in his career, and has only made it to the semifinals twice, in 2016 (losing to Milos Raonic) and 2022 (losing to Matteo Berrettini). During the press conference, Monfils was asked if he thinks he could win the title, but the Frenchman dismissed the possibility.

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"Win? No! To be honest with you, it's not even a dream to win the tournament. My dream is to be old and with a lot of kids, and healthy! I tell you my dream is to have an unbelievable family! Tennis, it's cool. Of course, you want a gold dream, whatever. But my dream is out there," Gael Monfils said.

Monfils has been married to World No. 28 Elina Svitolina since 2021, with whom he has a 2-year-old daughter, Skaï. Svitolina also caused a stir on Saturday after defeating World No. 4 Jasmine Paolini, eliminating one of the main favorites in the women's draw.

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On Monfils' side, he will return to the court on Monday. The elimination of Fritz and Daniil Medvedev has opened up space in one of the quarters, precisely where Monfils is. His next challenge is against 21st seed Ben Shelton, whom he has never faced before. In the same quarter, Learner Tien and Lorenzo Sonego will meet, meaning one of those names will be at least a semifinalist at the Aussie Open.

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