Elina Svitolina announces marriage with Gael Monfils is over in surprise news: "I need to find my way back to myself"

As Gael Monfils' career has officially ended without his Lyon or Paris homecoming, it seems that there was a likely reason for this, as Elina Svitolina confirmed this morning that their marriage is now over.

Surprise news is that Monfils and Svitolina were the main power couple on the tennis tour and share a daughter, Skai, with each other but have now gone separate ways.

Svitolina and Monfils met in 2018 in Paris and were briefly engaged before marrying in June 2021. The following year, they welcomed Skai to the world. Svitolina returned to tennis shortly after, in what was one of the best success stories post-pregnancy the sport has ever seen.

Svitolina has since become a fixture at the top of the game again despite having to now become a mother and also everything going on back home with the war in Ukraine. But this has seemingly borne part of the reason with Svitolina saying how much the war has affected her and that she has battled self-doubt and sleepless nights. All with Monfils by her side, but that she has got to the point now where she needs to find herself again, which can't be done in her marriage.

Monfils, like alluded to, was a surprise retiree on the ITIA list this past week, with many expecting him to play in Lyon and Paris to end his career. But given he would need to be tested for six months before a return ala Serena Williams, he is now very much retired. Svitolina is still very much flying and is in contention for the WTA Finals, but perhaps shows that within all that has been a battle that makes her achievements even more of a point to marvel over.

“This is the most difficult thing I have ever had to share," Svitolina penned on Instagram. "Everyone knows how much Ukraine means to me. What I have rarely spoken about is what the war has done to me inside.

"Last year, I told you I needed to step away from the court because I wasn't in the right emotional space. Today, I want to open up a little more. What you didn't see were the sleepless nights, the doubts, and the feeling of slowly losing myself. Gaël saw all of it. He never let go of my hand. We fought through this together for a long time, with everything we had.

"But some battles happen deep inside you, and no amount of love from someone else can win them for you. With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage. It is the hardest truth I have ever had to face and the hardest thing I have ever had to tell the person I love. Gaël listened. He has respected what I need with a strength and grace I will never forget.

"Gael has loved me through my greatest joys and my darkest moments, and I have loved him with all my heart. Together, we built a beautiful life, and we were given the most precious gift of all, our daughter, Skai. Skai will always come first. Our marriage is ending, but our family is not. We will always be her parents, side by side, at every step of her life.

"Please know that there is no one to blame here. There are only two people who loved each other deeply and a story that is changing shape. We ask for your kindness and for the space we need to heal. Thank you for your love."