"What a woman": Gael Monfils posts glowing tribute to wife Elina Svitolina after her third Rome triumph

For the first time since 2018, Elina Svitolina is a WTA 1000 champion.

The No. 7 seed battled past third-seeded Coco Gauff, 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-2, to secure her third Internazionali BNL d'Italia crown under a Saturday night sky. Her most recent 1000-level trophy had also come at the Foro Italico eight years earlier when she denied Simona Halep for the second year running.

Afterwards, Svitolina’s husband Gael Monfils posted a glowing tribute about her road to this moment.

“Eight years. Eight years to climb back to the top of a 1000. What a season, what a week, what a player. But above all, what a woman,” he wrote. “An incredible mom to Skaï, an exceptional athlete, a soul like no other.

“I’m so proud of you, my love. Of your strength, your calm, of everything you carry quietly day after day. You inspire me, every single day. Enjoy this, soak it all in. You deserve every second of it. I love you.”

Svitolina improved to a sensational 20-5 in tour-level finals, having finished runner-up to Jessica Pegula earlier this season at the WTA 1000 tournament in Dubai. The Ukrainian is projected to climb to No. 7 in the WTA rankings just in time for Roland Garros seedings following a run that saw her knock off the world No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 players.

Prior to taking the microphone, she briefly connected with Monfils.

“I spoke with him actually before the ceremony. He was just very happy, very proud of the effort,” Svitolina shared during her press conference. “He knows how much it means to me to win here, to win my 20th title. I really wanted to before I finish my career get a round number, for me to get over this hurdle of 20 titles.

“Every title had its own story. This one is I think one of the toughest draws that I had in a tournament.”

The 31-year-old will climb to No. 3 in the WTA Race to the WTA Finals heading into the season’s second major. Svitolina is 29-7 on the year, previously defeating Gauff in Melbourne to reach her first Australian Open semifinal.

“The way that I've been playing I think is, yeah, I'm very proud of the way that I've been handling myself and handling the nerves and being consistent,” she said.

“Of course, gives me a lot of confidence. Gives me a good look at Roland Garros. But still I want to put my head down and to really work, prepare from the first round. There are really tough players. You cannot underestimate.”