Elina Svitolina shares a sweet hug with husband Gael Monfils on the tennis court ahead of Wimbledon

Tennis stars Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils have recently shown their love for each other on the tennis court.

Svitolina and Monfils, both former top-10 players, tied the knot in July 2021. They announced their pregnancy in May 2022 and welcomed their daughter Skai in October 2022. The couple shared heartfelt messages on their respective Instagram handles, introducing their daughter to the world.

Svitolina posted the picture on her Instagram account on Sunday, June 25. She tagged Monfils in the picture with the caption:

“Sometimes I’m just like…I need a hug,” Svitolina wrote on Instagram.

Svitolina is gearing up for Wimbledon, where she hopes to repeat or surpass her 2019 run to the semifinals. The Ukrainian star has been training on grass after a successful clay season that saw her win Strasbourg and reach the last eight at Roland Garros.

Gael Monfils has not played a match since his withdrawal before the second round due to a wrist injury in the 2023 French Open. The Frenchman is expected to join Svitolina in London and compete at Wimbledon after 2021.

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Linda Fruhvirtova stuns Elina Svitolina in Birmingham opener

Elina Svitolina in 2023 French Open

Linda Fruhvirtova delivered a stunning upset in the first round of the Rothesay Classic, defeating wild card Elina Svitolina 6-2, 6-0 in just 52 minutes. The 18-year-old Czech, who won her maiden WTA Tour title in Chennai last year, snapped a four-match losing streak with a flawless performance against the former world No. 3.

Svitolina, who returned from maternity leave in April, had climbed back to No. 73 in the rankings after winning her 17th career title in Strasbourg and reaching the Roland Garros quarterfinals. However, she was unable to bring her clay-court form into her first match on grass since 2021.

Fruhvirtova, ranked No. 57, showed no signs of nerves in the main draw of the grass tournament. She had won just one of her four previous professional matches on the surface.

Still, she had enjoyed an excellent junior career, winning the 2021 Monastir 3 and 4 tournament in Mexico and the finals in Mexico in 2022. Fruhvirtova eventually lost to Barbora Krejcikova 3-6, 2-6 in the quarterfinals.

Elina Svitolina previously made a remarkable comeback at the 2023 French Open, reaching the quarterfinals for the fourth time in her career. She defeated four opponents, including ninth seed Daria Kasatkina, before falling to second seed Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets.

Svitolina and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova became the first players ranked outside of the top 150 to make the last eight at Roland Garros.