French veteran Gaël Monfils rolled back the years to stun the USA’s No. 4 seed Taylor Fritz in the third round of the Australian Open on Saturday, winning 3-6 7-5 7-6(1) 6-4 after three hours and eight minutes of scintillating tennis.
MELBOURNE, Australia — World No. 4 and U.S. Open finalist Taylor Fritz is out of the Australian Open after Gael Monfils continued his vintage run through the tournament. Fritz took the first set 6-3, but from thereafter Monfils took control, prevailing 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (1), 6-4.
Frenchman Monfils is only the second player aged 38 or over, after Roger Federer, to make the last 16 in Melbourne since 1988. He is enjoying quite the start to 2025 after becoming the oldest ever winner of an ATP Tour singles title in Auckland last weekend.
After his historic win, Monfils returned to Margaret Court Arena and sat in the stands to watch his wife, Svitolina, eliminate the women's No. 4 seed, two-time major finalist Jasmine Paolini 2-6, 6-4, 6-0 at night.
Monfils upset fourth-seeded Taylor Fritz of the United States 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (1), 6-4 in the third round at Melbourne, Australia. When Monfils made his Australian Open debut in 2005, Fritz, now 27 years old, was 7.
John McEnroe hailed Gael Monfils as "one of the three most talented guys never to win a major" after the French veteran’s stunning win over Taylor Fritz.
The 38-year-old served out the American, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (1), 6-4, for his best Grand Slam victory by ranking in his 65th appearance.
Monfils joined Roger Federer as the only men to achieve this age-defying feat, before Svitolina eliminated No. 4 seed Jasmine Paolini later in the day.
In a new Daily Dose of Social Media, we explore the behind-the-scenes moments of Gael Monfils and Elina Svitolina supporting each other after achieving big upsets against the World No. 4 players,
Elina Svitolina came from a set down to upset Jasmine Paolini in the third round of the Australian Open, while Madison Keys won an all-American clash over Danielle Collins.
Gael Monfils has often been blamed for not taking full advantage of his talent during his career. Indeed, the French veteran could have achieved more prestigious results although he played in the same era as legends such as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.