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Gael Monfils has revealed that telling his father about his impending retirement was “the hardest part” of his decision to step away from the sport.

One of the most popular tennis players of his generation, Monfils announced earlier this year that he would retire in the upcoming 2026 season, saying he felt “overwhelmed with gratitude.”

The 39-year-old reached a career-high of world No 6 in the ATP Rankings back in 2016 and won 13 ATP Tour titles, reaching the semi-final of both the French Open and US Open during his career.

Novak Djokovic, Naomi Osaka, and wife Elina Svitolina were among those to pay tribute to Monfils at the time of his initial announcement.

While his final tournament is yet to be confirmed, the entirety of the Frenchman’s 2026 campaign promises to be emotional, with the star beloved by players and fans across the globe.

And, in a new interview with RTL, Monfils revealed that he had been pondering the decision to retire for quite some time before his official announcement.

He said (translated from French): “I’ve been thinking about it for quite some time. I’m finally ready to say goodbye to this sport that has given me everything.

“I still love tennis. But now it’s more about age, recovery. I have a family now, other responsibilities. Performances are much harder to string together.

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“These are simply natural things for any athlete. At some point, there is an end.”

Among Monfils’ key supporters across his career has been his father, Rufin.

A former professional football player, Rufin supported his son throughout his professional tennis journey, and the pair remain incredibly close.

Reflecting on his decision to step away from the sport and retire, Monfils revealed that telling his father about his upcoming retirement was the most challenging part of the whole process.

“For 40 years, my father has been driven by his son who wanted to play tennis from a very young age,” added Monfils.

“Announcing my retirement to my father was definitely the hardest part… I even told him that it wasn’t easy to tell him.”

Monfils is currently ranked 68th in the world, recording an 18-15 record across 2025.

The Frenchman started the season incredibly strongly, with victory at the Auckland Open in January making him the oldest ATP Tour champion since the tour officially launched in 1990.

That was then followed by a run to the second week of the Australian Open, with Monfils stunning Taylor Fritz during his run.

However, he was unable to maintain that form across the year, losing eight of his last nine matches on tour across the spring and summer.

Monfils has not played since retiring injured against Alexander Shevchenko in the opening round of the Chengdu Open in September.

Read Next: 2026 Adelaide International ATP Entry List: Novak Djokovic, Jack Draper & Stefanos Tsitispas to star

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Novak Djokovic will begin his 2026 campaign at the Adelaide International, while Jack Draper and Stefanos Tsitsipas are also set to feature at the event.

The Adelaide International, which was founded in 2020, is one of the lead-in tournaments to the Australian Open in Melbourne.

The ATP 250 tournament is staged on outdoor hard courts at the Memorial Drive Tennis Centre in Adelaide.

Felix Auger-Aliassime won the 2025 edition of the event, but he has opted not to defend his title as he is not on the 2026 entry list.

Djokovic and Draper are the two top 10 stars who have signed up, while Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Jiri Lehecka and Tommy Paul’s presence means there will be five top 20 players in the field.

It will be Djokovic’s first tournament of the year, while it is scheduled to Draper’s second after the United Cup.

How many players will compete?

The men’s singles draw at the Adelaide International features 28 players, with the top four seeds receiving a bye into the second round.

There have been 19 direct entrants confirmed, while there will also be four qualifiers and three wildcards.

2026 Adelaide International ATP Entry List

4) Novak Djokovic
10) Jack Draper
14) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
17) Jiri Lehecka
20) Tommy Paul
21) Francisco Cerundolo
24) Joao Fonseca
25) Tallon Griekspoor
29) Arthur Rinderknech
31) Valentin Vacherot
32) Tomas Machac
33) Brandon Nakashima
34) Stefanos Tsitsipas
35) Corentin Moutet
36) Jaume Munar
37) Ugo Humbert
40) Arthur Fils
41) Gabriel Diallo
54) Alexei Popyrin

When will the event take place?

The 2026 Adelaide International ATP tournament will be held from January 12 to 17.

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Djokovic won the Adelaide International on his only previous appearance in 2023, beating Sebastian Korda in the final.

Lehecka is the other former champion on the entry list, with the Czech having overcome Draper in the 2024 final.

What did Novak Djokovic say after winning the 2023 Adelaide International?

After his thrilling 6-7(8), 7-6(3), 6-4 victory over Korda in the 2023 Adelaide title match, Djokovic said: “It was a great week obviously.

“Concluding the week with the trophy, better than losing in the finals. But it was anybody’s match today. I thought, what I said on the court, that he was closer to win it. He had match point. He was a break up, 40-love in the first set, he managed to win the tiebreaker.

“He (Korda) was quite in control. I wasn’t playing my best at all. But found a way to win.

“I think in the tough days, when you’re not maybe striking the ball, not feeling your best on the court, and you win the match, particularly if it’s like latter stages of the tournament, like the finals, it just gives you even more confidence and satisfaction for achieving that.”

READ NEXT: Andy Murray makes Roger Federer practice revelation as he shares Novak Djokovic insight

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Coco Gauff and Gavin MacMillan’s decision to focus on fixing her forehand before her serve has been questioned by former WTA Tour star Alexandra Stevenson.

World No 3 Gauff is one of the most accomplished players of her generation, with the 21-year-old winning her second Grand Slam singles title at the French Open back in June.

The American was previously a champion at the US Open back in 2023 and is a three-time champion at WTA 1000 events, alongside triumphing at the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh.

However, despite a consistent level of success in recent years, Gauff has also repeatedly struggled with key elements in her game, with her serve and forehand proving particularly troublesome at times.

Struggles with her grip on both serve and forehand strokes prompted her decision to hire Matt Daly in September 2024, and their partnership was initially successful.

However, a recurrence of her issues saw her split with Daly just days before the US Open and hire another grip specialist, MacMillan, who previously worked with Aryna Sabalenka.

Gauff would win the Wuhan Open early into her partnership with MacMillan, but was beaten in the fourth round of the US Open, and suffered a round-robin exit at the WTA Finals this November.

MacMillan’s priority with Gauff appears to have been solving her issues on the forehand wing.

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However, speaking on the Inside-In Tennis Podcast, former Wimbledon semi-finalist Stevenson questioned whether this was the right approach.

Speaking about Gauff’s work on her serve, Stevenson claimed that this should have taken place before any work on the 21-year-old’s groundstrokes.

She said: “It’s been a long time coming, that’s kind of been the number one thing I’ve seen.

“I don’t understand why, she [Gauff] should be able to fix it, she’s such a good athlete, but technically there’s issues within the motion and hopefully this guy [MacMillan] is fixing it.

“I haven’t seen her practices, but technically there’s like three things that she should be able to fix right away. In practice, that doesn’t mean under pressure — the serve and forehand go together, so the forehand was first, but it should have been the serve fixed first, I think.

“I think they should have attacked the serve and then gone off the forehand, because when you don’t have a serve, and you lose it, you lose your forehand, that’s just across the board in tennis.

“So they did it backwards, but they’re working on it, and she’s still beating girls, because on the women’s tour now the serve is an issue.”

Stevenson elaborated further by then claiming that “everybody” on the WTA Tour could improve their serve, with Gauff far from the only player struggling.

“Everybody’s serve could get better on the women’s side, that’s why [Elena] Rybakina came out of nowhere and won the year-end [WTA] Finals against the top eight, right, basically her serve.

“It’s a fundamental thing that I’ve found in coaching, the serve gets neglected on the women’s side, and that really bothers me, because it should be the number one thing worked on.

“As you see the men, the men don’t have meltdowns.”

Despite struggles at points, Gauff finished at world No 3 in the WTA Rankings for the third consecutive season, with further Grand Slam and WTA 1000 success contributing towards her WTA Ranking.

The American will start her 2026 season representing America in the United Cup, the mixed team event held across Sydney and Perth.

The US enters the tournament as the reigning champions, with Gauff winning all of her singles matches in the 2025 edition of the event.

Read Next: Exclusive – Former world No 5 compares Sabalenka, Swiatek, Gauff to her own era in ‘less diverse’ verdict

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The WTA Tour has announced the winners of the WTA Player Awards for the 2025 season, with Aryna Sabalenka, Amanda Anisimova and Victoria Mboko all claiming prizes.

The five Player Awards are: Player of the Year, Doubles Team of the Year, Most Improved Player, Comeback Player and Newcomer of the Year.

Here are the award winners, which are voted for by international tennis media.

Player of the Year – Aryna Sabalenka

Aryna Sabalenka has received the WTA Player of the Year award for the second straight season after a stellar 2025 campaign.

The Belarusian, who spent the entire 2025 season as the world No 1, earned almost 80% of the media’s vote, according to the WTA.

Sabalenka won more titles (four) and reached more finals (nine) than any other player, while she was by far the most consistent performer at the biggest events.

The 27-year-old won the US Open, was a runner-up at Roland Garros, the Australian Open and the WTA Finals, and was a semi-finalist at Wimbledon. She also collected WTA 1000 crowns in Miami and Madrid.

The other main contender for the 2025 Player of the Year award was Iga Swiatek, who won Wimbledon and ended the season as the world No 2.

In truth, though, Sabalenka came out on top this year by most significant statistical metrics.

Most Improved Player – Amanda Anisimova

Amanda Anisimova has been named the Most Improved Player of 2025 — a superb season she finished at a career-high ranking of world No 4 having been ranked 41st in February.

The 24-year-old American was a runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open and claimed WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Beijing.

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Comeback Player – Belinda Bencic

Former world No 4 Belinda Bencic fully earned the Comeback Player of 2025 award as she made a remarkable 410-place jump from a ranking of 421st at the start of the year to 11th at the end.

The 28-year-old Swiss, who gave birth to her first child in April 2024, secured WTA 500 titles in Abu Dhabi and Tokyo, while she also reached the Wimbledon semi-finals.

Newcomer of the Year – Victoria Mboko

Victoria Mboko began the year as the world No 333 and finished it at a career-best ranking of 18th.

The 19-year-old Canadian won her maiden WTA title in stunning fashion as a wildcard at the WTA 1000 event in Montreal. She also won the Hong Kong Open WTA 250.

Doubles Team of the Year – Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend

Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend are ranked first and second in the doubles rankings, with the pair having won the Australian Open and the Dubai Championships together in 2025. The Czech-American team also reached the US Open final.

READ NEXT: Former world No 5 compares Sabalenka, Swiatek, Gauff to her own era in ‘less diverse’ verdict

The post 2025 WTA Tour Awards: Sabalenka vs Swiatek best player battle decided as Anisimova, Mboko win prizes appeared first on Tennis365.

Carlos Alcaraz believes he has previously been missing the ‘final step’ to go deep at the Australian Open as he sets his sights on a historic triumph in Melbourne next month.

Currently ranked as the world No 1, Alcaraz has already cemented his place as one of the leading players of his era and one of the most accomplished players of all time, with six Grand Slam singles titles to his name.

Despite only turning 22 this past May, the Spaniard is already a two-time champion at the French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open, and is one step away from completing the Career Grand Slam.

However, the Australian Open has been far and away the weakest of the four Grand Slam tournaments from Alcaraz’s perspective.

While the Spaniard has achieved two triumphs each at the other three Grand Slams — and a further Wimbledon runner-up finish in 2025 — he has never reached the semi-final in Melbourne.

Alcaraz’s best showings at the Australian Open have been two quarter-finals runs, falling in the last eight to Alexander Zverev in 2024 and to Novak Djokovic at the same stage in 2025.

Having split the last eight Grand Slam men’s singles titles with leading rival Jannik Sinner, Alcaraz will be one of the heavy favourites to triumph inside the Rod Laver Arena next year.

However, he will have to break significant new ground inside Melbourne Park, and potentially dethrone Sinner — who has lifted the Australian Open title the past two years.

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Speaking on the radio station COPE Murcia, Alcaraz revealed that the tournament was his main “objective” for the new season, and detailed why he had faced difficulties in the past.

He said: “My objective for 2026 is Australia, and the good and the bad thing is that it’s the first tournament of the year.

“We’ll try to be as ready and as well prepared as possible to show a good level and hopefully achieve the goal we want.

“I think because it’s the first tournament of the year. It’s about getting into rhythm. It’s not that it doesn’t suit me — it’s just that some players do better there, or when we’ve competed, it’s come down to small details.

“I think I’ve played very good tennis in Australia, I’ve just missed that final step to go further. I believe and hope this year will be different.”

The Australian Open main draw will begin on Sunday, January 18 next year, with the men’s singles final set to take place on Sunday, February 1.

Alcaraz is not set to play an official warm-up tournament prior to the Australian Open, as has been his approach in recent years.

However, the Spaniard has recently competed at two exhibition matches in the United States, and is set to face Sinner in an exhibition match in South Korea the weekend before action gets underway in Melbourne.

Should Alcaraz lift the title in Melbourne, he would join Rod Laver, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic as the only men to complete the Career Grand Slam in the Open Era.

Read Next: Exclusive – Who can break Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner’s dominance? Marcos Baghdatis predicts

The post Carlos Alcaraz explains past Australian Open struggles as he reveals 2026 ‘hope’ appeared first on Tennis365.

Andy Murray has revealed why Roger Federer stopped practising with him and never trained with Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic throughout his career.

At his peak, Murray competed with Federer, Nadal and Djokovic during what was a golden age of tennis.

During a career spanning from 2005 to 2024, Murray secured 46 singles titles, including three Grand Slams, and spent 41 weeks as the world No 1.

Djokovic, Nadal and Federer make up the top three on the all-time men’s Grand Slam title list, with 24, 22 and 20 majors respectively.

What is Andy Murray’s record against Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic?

Murray played 85 matches combined against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic and compiled 29 victories over the legendary trio.

• 11-14 vs. Federer
• 11-25 vs. Djokovic
• 7-17 vs. Nadal

What Andy Murray said about practising with his biggest rivals

Murray discussed practising with his ‘Big Four’ rivals with snooker legend Stephen Hendry during an appearance on the Stephen Hendry Cue Tips YouTube channel.

“I would practise with them, I’d practise with Djokovic and Nadal,” said the two-time Olympic champion.

“When I first started, I would practise with Federer. But then he, after like a year or two, stopped. He wouldn’t practise with me anymore.

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“And he never practised with Djokovic or Nadal, I think if he considered them to be a competitor to him.

“I like practising with them just because it gave me the chance to see where my game was at.

“I wouldn’t practise with them a couple of days before a big match, but a couple weeks out from a major tournament, then I would practise with those guys.

“I was never going for dinner with them, whereas now, I’d love to do that — see them a few times socially.”

Murray was asked if he had friends when he was at the top of the sport.

“No, not at the top of the game. Generally, if I’m socialising with friends and family, you want to feel like you can tell them if you’re struggling with something,” Murray explained.

“But if you’re competing against them, you wouldn’t do it.”

The former world No 1 also shared an interesting insight from his time coaching Djokovic.

“A two-handed backhand, you use that left hand a lot,” Murray said.

“Djokovic, when I was helping him, with all the sessions, he’d start just using his left hand warming up.”

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There is one big fear rippling through women’s tennis when the increasingly heated debate over the upcoming ‘Battle of the Sexes’ clash between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios is discussed – but it may never become a reality.

World No 1 Sabalenka will face 2022 Wimbledon champion Kyrgios in a contest that has sparked a huge amount of interest since it was announced.

In a bid to neutralise some of the physical advantages Kyrgios would have, both players will only have one serve per point and Sabalenka will play on a slightly smaller court.

It will be a fascinating contest and it’s safe to assume that even its biggest critics will be watching, with the concern around the match focused on a potential heavy defeat for Sabalenka.

A fully fit Kyrgios would expect to see off his opponent pretty comfortably if they were contesting the match in conventional conditions, but the changes that have been made to balance the playing field are designed to give Sabalenka a chance to compete.

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So if the world’s best female player is well beaten by an opponent who has been unable to play too many competitive matches due to injury over the last three years, it would not be a good look for the women’s game.

Of course, there is a strong chance that Sabalenka will give a less-than-fully fit rival a real match and if she could pull off a famous victory, this showpiece contest would be a good moment for the women’s game.

The interest the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match will generate has to be good for tennis as it will get eyes on the sport at a time of the year when there are very few competitive tournaments for fans to watch, but the Dubai battle continues to attract plenty of negativity.

Respected broadcaster Catherine Whittaker has been among the most outspoken opponents of the Sabalanka vs Kyrgios match, as she offered up these strong views on The Tennis Podcast.

“Nick Kyrgios is a man who stands for something and that’s not an accident. He is choosing to stand for and represent misogyny,” said Whittaker.

“This is what Nick Kyrgios will be representing and fighting for in the self-titled Battle of the Sexes. A validation of his belittling of women’s tennis and the way he perceives women and women’s sport of being lesser purely on the basis of brute power.

“This event is a dog whistle. It feels like a dog whistle publicity stunt. A symbol of the populist Trumpian age of do-whistles and division and stupidity.”

Sabalenka hit out at the controversy around this match, as she insisted the contest will be a positive showcase for the women’s game.

“It’s not going to be an easy match for Nick,” Sabalenka said. “I’m going to be there competing and showing women are strong, powerful and good entertainment. He’s in a lose-lose situation. I’m in a win-win situation.

“I am not putting myself at any risk. We’re there to have fun and bring great tennis. Whoever wins, wins. It’s so obvious that the man is biologically stronger than the woman, but it’s not about that. This event is only going to help bring women’s tennis to a higher level.”

The world will be watching on December 28 and Sabalenka will be doing all she can to confirm her power on a tennis court can be a tough test for a big hitter like Kyrgios.

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Former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis has predicted which of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will win more Grand Slam titles and named the ATP player who he thinks can break the pair’s duopoly.

Alcaraz has won six Grand Slams, having defeated Sinner in four sets in the US Open final in September to secure his most recent major.

Sinner has claimed four majors, with his most recent coming at Wimbledon in July this year, where he overcame Alcaraz in four sets in the championship match.

Between them, Alcaraz and Sinner have each won four of the last eight Grand Slams, and the duo separated themselves from the chasing pack in 2025. They met in the finals at five consecutive tournaments they both competed in (from the Italian Open to the US Open).

In an exclusive interview, Tennis365 asked Baghdatis whether he thinks Alcaraz or Sinner will finish with more majors.

“Very tough question. I would go with Alcaraz because he has more variety to his game, I can say,” said the former world No 8

“But he’s mentally maybe less consistent than Sinner, so it can backfire. But yeah, I would go with Alcaraz.”

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Baghdatis identified 19-year-old Brazilian star Joao Fonseca as the next man who will break through and win a Grand Slam in the coming years.

“Maybe Fonseca, I would say. That’s one of them who could, and I think will,” assessed the Cypriot.

“But other than Fonseca, especially in a Grand Slam in a five-setter, I don’t see [who can stop Alcaraz and Sinner]… Yeah, maybe [Alexander] Zverev can win here and there, one or two. But it’s gonna be tough.”

Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominance has seen them compared to Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

Baghdatis, who faced each of the Big Three during his own career, addressed how Alcaraz and Sinner’s level compared to that of the three icons in their prime.

“Honestly, it’s very tough to compare,” Baghdatis said.

“What I can say, I see the whole of tennis right now and I think… my opinion is that before; the Roger, the Rafa, the Novak, the Andy [Murray]’s – they had so many people pushing them behind them.

“When I say so many, you had the [Stan] Wawrinka’s, you had the [Jo-Wilfried] Tsonga’s, you had the [David] Ferrer’s. So that’s where I think they stand out a bit – because their competition was much better.

“So yeah, that’s what I think. Maybe I’m wrong, but what’s what I see. But to compare… the only way you could compare Alcaraz and Sinner to those three, four players was to put them there.”

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Serena Williams appears to be flirting with a stunning tennis comeback at the age of 44 and former British No 1 Greg Rusedski has predicted when he might make what could be a brief and final appearance on a tennis court.

Williams has added herself back onto the anti-doping list that all professional players need to sign up to if they want to compete on the tennis tour.

That decision inevitably led to speculation that the 23-time Grand Slam winning legend is planning an audacious return to the sport, more than three years after she called time on her career at the 2022 US Open.

A full-time return to tennis appears to be unlikely for the mother of two, but Rusedski suspects Williams has a plan in mind and it might be linked to a final appearance on court for her sister Venus.

“For me, I think she might play some doubles with Venus,” said Rusedski, speaking on the first episode of his new podcast, Off Court with Greg, which goes live on Monday.

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“If Venus is hanging up the rackets, I think she has gone on the (doping) list to sign off with Venus, which started the Williams sisters story.

“What an amazing story. I think it’s the greatest story ever. You look at the Dad and they have made a movie out of this, King Richard. He said I don’t have one Michael Jordan, I have two Michael Jordans.

“What Serena and Venus did coming from Compton is incredible, so I think she has put herself on the and will play doubles with Venus. It could be Wimbledon, it could be the US Open and boy, would I love to see that. I hope I’m there to see that in person if it happens.”

Serena’s former coach Patrick Mouratoglou also gave his verdict on a potential comeback for his former player, as he backed the tennis legend to return to the game.

“I think when Serena wants something and when she puts her heart in it, there are not much things that are impossible,” said Mouratoglou. “So I guess, if she thinks about her comeback, she will only [do it] if she thinks she can compete with the best.

“Otherwise, she will not. That’s not her mindset. That’s never been her mindset. Maybe this (comeback) is something that crossed her mind because she’s in super shape, as everybody saw.

“She looks like she’s back to being a top athlete after being a mother. To open an opportunity and to come back, there is, I think, a long way to go, so I guess we’ll know in a few months if it happens.”

Williams has downplayed talk of a comeback, but the tennis world will be waiting to see if we get a final burst of magic from the Williams sisters in 2026.

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Roger Federer has confirmed he will make a return to the Australian Open next month, as the Swiss legend is set to be part of an exhibition match with three fellow former world No 1s in Melbourne, but could we see even more of the 20-time Grand Slam champion in 2026?

Federer won the season-opening Grand Slam in 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017 and 2018, with his victory against Rafael Nadal in his penultimate Australian Open win one of the most emotional in his career as he won unexpectedly after returning from injury.

Now Federer has confirmed he will get a chance to wave a final farewell to the Australian fans in Melbourne, as he will take to the court with four-time Australian Open champion and eight-time major champion Andre Agassi, two-time US Open champion Patrick Rafter and two-time major winner Lleyton Hewitt in a star-studded encounter on January 17.

“It feels like a lifetime ago that I coined the phrase the ‘Happy Slam’ for the Australian Open, and it still makes me smile when I think about all the moments I’ve had here,” the 24-time Grand Slam winner said.

“I’ve experienced so many emotions on Rod Laver Arena … the joy of lifting ‘Norman’ six times, the honour of playing in front of Rod Laver himself, the challenge of competing against my biggest rivals, and always the overwhelming love and support of the Australian fans.

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“Coming back to win the AO in 2017 is one of my most treasured Grand Slam memories and backing it up to win in 2018 was another dream come true in Melbourne. I can’t wait to come Down Under again to the AO and create more fantastic moments with all the Aussie fans.”

Federer recently suggested he is stepping up his hours on the tennis court, with the knee problem that ended his career no longer troubling him.

He has also hinted that he would like to start playing exhibition matches and that could spark a whole new chapter in his story.

Federer fans would pay big money to watch their idol back on court and he is open to an exhibition tour that could also provide funds for his charitable foundation.

He commented on his plan last year, amid suggestions that he could revive his rivalry with Rafael Nadal.

“I would love to start playing two or three times a week and hopefully get myself back on the exhibition court and fill up a few nice around the world. I have no plans yet,” he stated.

Nadal confirmed on Friday that he has undergone surgery on a hand issue, so that would rule out any prospect of a return to action against Federer in the opening months of the New Year, but there is every chance we will see what was arguably the greatest tennis rivalry of all-time revived in a less competitive environment in 2026.

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