Elina Svitolina is caught adorably asking umpire if her husband Gael Monfils had begun playing midway through her own victory vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
- Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils have been married since 2021
- And the Ukrainian was interested in her husband’s match during her own
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Elina Svitolina found an unorthodox source of inspiration Thursday as she trailed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova at the US Open.
After dropping the first set 5-7, the Ukrainian began talking to the umpire during the changeover.
But the world no. 26 was actually focused on another match entirely, as she asked the official if her husband Gael Monfils had begun playing vs. Andrey Rublev.
Svitolina would come back to win the match 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, and spoke afterwards about what she was trying to achieve with her uncommon question.
‘I was just trying to get a little motivation from him. I know he’s playing out there,’ Svitolina said to the Open’s in-house media after the match.
Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils share a kiss at this year’s DC Open in late July
Svitolina was seen asking the umpire if her husband had started playing during her own match
Monfils lost on Thursday while his wife Svitolina moved onto the third round of the Open
‘Just [to] change my head a little bit, I was not playing my best, I had to bring different energy.’
Svitolina and Monfils have been married since 2021 and share a daughter, Skai, together.
Svitolina was absent from the Open last year as she was pregnant.
Monfils, who has won 11 career titles, was asked after his own match if he’d seen the heartwarming clip of his wife.
‘I haven’t seen it,’ he said. ‘For me, I asked [about her match]. It was 5-3 for her in the third set.
‘We both like to know everything’s going good.’
While Svitolina moved into the third round, Monfils was eliminated in four sets by Rublev.
She will play Jessica Pegula in the next round.
