Rafael Nadal remains the greatest clay-court player in the history of tennis having won over 60 titles on the surface. In one of those title wins, he faced Gael Monfils. In a recent interview, Monfils narrated how the match went and his feelings after it.

In the 2016 Monte Carlo Masters, Monfils was playing the best tennis of his career and didn’t drop any set en route to the final. The Frenchman defeated one of the tournament’s favorites, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 6-1, 6-3, in the semifinals. Nadal, on the other hand, was not playing his best tennis but was able to win matches.

However, in the final between the two players, Monfils showed a fighting spirit in the match not giving Nadal much chance. Despite losing the opening set 5-7, the former World No.16 bounced back to win the second set 7-5. Motivated, Monfils believed he was going to beat Nadal, but in the deciding set, he was bageled.

Rafael Nadal defeated Monfils 7-5, 5-7, 6-0 to claim his 28th Masters 1000 title at that time. During a conversation in a podcast, Monfils narrated that he was determined to win the match, but Nadal outperformed him extraordinarily.

Monfils had to wait until August to claim his only title of the 2016 season at the Citi Open in Washington DC. The 38-year-old has won 12 career titles but is known for his electric and exciting style of tennis.

Elina Svitolina, Gael Monfils’ wife, suffered an injury during her third-round loss to Coco Gauff at the 2024 US Open. The 30-year-old underwent foot surgery after that but has been out of action since then. The Ukrainian star has already revealed on social media about her rehab and has been on the practice court.

In a recent interview, Monfils was asked about how soon his wife will be back on the court. He revealed that she would be aiming for a comeback in January.

Since the start of the 2022 season, Svitolina has managed to play just 85 matches. This is not only due to injuries but also taking time off to give birth to her daughter Skai in October of that same year.