Elina Svitolina will be courtside for husband Gaël Monfils, hopes he joins her in Australian Open quarterfinals

With her match in the bag, Elina Svitolina can shift her focus back on husband Gaël Monfils, who is a win away from joining her in the Australian Open quarterfinals on Monday.

After opening play on Rod Laver Arena with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Veronika Kudermetova, the No. 28 seed plans a trip to Margaret Court Arena to watch Monfils—whom she married in 2021 —take on Ben Shelton for a spot in the last eight.

“Hopefully courtside!” she said when asked where she plans to watch the hotly anticipated fourth-round clash. I have time, a little bit, to do my recovery, and then we’ll put all energy towards his match.

“It’s going to be an epic one, so hopefully you guys can give him big support!” she added, hyping up the crowd.

A sentimental favorite, Monfils will likely have the crowd behind him against the No. 21 seed, who himself has become popular thanks to his high-octane tennis. But the 38-year-old Monfils has been one of the stories of the tournament after starting the year with a title in Auckland and stunning No. 4 seed Taylor Fritz in the third round.

“Playing the way he plays right now is special,” said Svitolina, who defeated a No. 4 seed of her own in Jasmine Paolini on the same day, “and I feel like we’re really witnessing something really nice.”

Svitolina’s resurgence has been less pronounced but equally impressive after an injury-addled 2024 led the Ukrainian shut down her season and pursue surgery for the foot problem that had troubled her since her comeback from maternity leave in 2023.

“It’s become harder to manage and has been impacting me more and more, not just with regard to tennis and training but in my every-day life too,” said Svitolina, who was picking up compensation injuries as a result of the errant foot.

In her first tournament since the US Open last summer, Svitolina has dropped just one set in four rounds, dropping a 6-0 final set on Paolini and winning 11 of the last 12 games against Kudermetova to book a quarterfinal meeting against either Elena Rybakina or Madison Keys.

“I feel like it was a lifetime ago,” the 30-year-old Svitolina said of her last quarterfinal appearance Down Under. “From having our daughter Skaï, then surgery as well. Many things happened and I’m really pleased with the performance throughout this tournament, and really enjoying this win today.”

Svitolina hopes to enjoy at least one more win today when Monfils and Shelton face off third on MCA.