Gael Monfils, affectionately known as “La Monf,” has never reached a French Open final, but at 38 years old, he has long since secured a place in the hearts of the Parisian faithful. Born and raised in the French capital, Monfils’ connection to Roland Garros runs deep—he was the world’s top-ranked junior and the winner of the 2004 French Open boys’ title, one of three junior Grand Slam victories that year. Turning professional later in 2004, he made his main draw debut in Paris in 2005 and has since delivered a career full of memorable runs and thrilling moments—including a semifinal appearance in 2008 and three quarterfinals, the last in 2014.
Monfils has now compiled a 40-16 at the French Open, which is his best performance across the four Grand Slam tournaments. At 38, he holds the record for the most Grand Slam wins by a French Player, quite an achievement in a country that has produced many talents, and he’s still producing results on the ATP Tour, as he lifted an ATP title earlier this season to become the oldest man to win a singles title on tour.
The shotmaking, the drama, the fan friendly attitude and fighting spirit, Monfils brings so much passion and skill to the court, and the Parisian crowd is the one that loves him the most. Monfils late career resurgence after battling fitness and injuries earlier in his career has partly been attributed by his strong marriage with WTA player Elina Svitolina. Monfils stated that Svitolina has been a massive encouragement to him and that her continued presence on tour, allowing the couple to enjoy time together while playing professional tennis, has kept him active on tour.
Another Parisian Epic: Monfils vs. Dellien (2025)
In his latest Roland Garros chapter, Monfils staged yet another unforgettable comeback in front of an electric Court Philippe-Chatrier. Facing Bolivia’s Hugo Dellien in the first round, Monfils looked down and out after dropping the first two sets. But leaning on his serve and drawing energy from the crowd, he stormed back, taking the third set 6–1 and edging a tense fourth-set tiebreak 7–4. Despite crashing into a courtside billboard and requiring medical attention, Monfils was the fresher man as Dellien cramped in the fifth. The final score: 4–6, 3–6, 6–1, 7–6(4), 6–1.
Top 5 player and British #1 Jack Draper awaits in the second round, as Monfils looks to pull off a monumental upset. While Monfils hasn’t always featured in the second week of the French Open, he’s featured consistently in the highlight reel of the first week of the tournament. The win against Dellien makes it 12 times Monfils has been involved in a five setter in Paris.
In 2006, the 19 year old Monfils “brightened up a dreary day” defeating 35 year old Dick Norman 4-6 6-3 6-7 6-0 7-5. In 2007 he upset the talented clay courter David Nalbandian in five sets.
In 2011, Monfils beat the ultimate grinder, David Ferrer, 8-6 in the fifth set in a match that transpired over two days.
Monfils two five set clashes with Fabio Fognini at Roland Garros were two of the most memorable early round matches the tournament as ever had. Two charismatic and expressive players, Monfils and Fognini battled. In 2010, Monfils insisted on playing on in the near darkness, despite angry protests from Fognini. The match was suspended 5-5 in the 5th set, before Fognini would come back the next day and win 9-7.
In 2014 Monfils dominated the 5th set to win and get his revenge, before playing a second five setter in the same year, as he fell to Andy Murray in the quarterfinals during the peak of Murray’s decorated career.
In 2015 Monfils played consecutive five setters and pushed his fitness to its absolute limit, defeating talented South American clay courters Diego Schwartzman and Pablo Cuevas. 2017 saw Monfils defeat Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro in five, and in 2019 he fell to the accomplished clay courter Dominic Thiem in the fourth round.
In 2023, Monfils showed why his early round matches are always appointment viewing, as he defeated Sebastian Baez in a match that he called one of the “greatest of his career“.
Looking at this list of matches, it’s worth noting that Monfils has consistently faced talented and worthy opposition, whether he won or lost, with all of the players he battled with accomplished on clay. He’s always thrived off the energy and environment created by the crowd as well, as all of the aforementioned matches saw the home support getting vocal for Monfils.
The oldest player in the top 100, Monfils saw his contemporary rivals Roger Federer, Andy Murray, and Novak Djokovic (still active) take part in a ceremony to honor Rafael Nadal on center court on Sunday, and he’s also witnessing his compatriot Richard Gasquet, and Stan Wawrinka wind down their careers, but it sure doesn’t look like he’s ready to hang up his racquet yet. Having forged an eternal bond with the fans of Roland Garros, what does Monfils have in store for round 2?
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
