“It was never my intention…,” Gael Monfils clears the air on shocking disqualification from UTS Oslo, as he advocates “peace and love”

UTS has clarified that there was no malice in the intentions of Gael Monfils.

“It was never my intention…,” Gael Monfils clears the air on shocking disqualification from UTS Oslo, as he advocates “peace and love”

Gael Monfils (Source: Daily Express)

French tennis player Gael Monfils has been disqualified from UTS Oslo after his playful exchange with Stephane Apostolou led to the tournament advisor sustaining a minor injury. Although the organizers have themselves clarified that Monfils did not have the intention to hurt Stephane, they had to disqualify the player, keeping the rules in mind. They have also invited him to take part in the next edition of the tournament. 

Gael Monfils has himself come out on X (formerly Twitter) and given clarification about the incident. He confirmed that there was no abuse or violence involved in the incident and said that Stephane was hurt while joking in the locker room. He also revealed that the two of them have shaken hands and moved on. 

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He wrote:

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Whilst joking around in the locker room, Stephane was unfortunately hurt. It was never my intention to hurt or cause harm and thankfully Stephane knows that. People who know me, know this is not in my nature. Stephane and I have shook hands and move on.
Gael Monfils wrote on X

Monfils added that although the fact that he was disqualified makes it look like the incident was serious and that there was some sort of abuse involved, it was not the case. Monfils reiterated that it was nothing but an accident. 

The Frenchman added:

The disqualification makes this look like there was an issue or altercation backstage but really there wasn’t, this was an accident and nothing more. Peace and love.
Gael Monfils on X

Gael Monfils has been replaced by Lucas Pouille

Gael Monfils played sensationally well in his first match of the UTS Oslo against Alex de Minaur and won 5-12, 17-8, 16-9. He was set to face Benoit Paire in his next match but got disqualified before it could take place. He has now been replaced by another Frenchman, Lucas Pouille. He has a ranking of World No. 313 but at this moment, UTS could not find a better replacement for the veteran. 

Gael Monfils (Source: USA Today)
Gael Monfils (Source: USA Today)

Monfils himself has not been in that great a form lately. He lost to Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the second round of the Australian Open.

However, the 37-year-old is still one of the most entertaining players out there’s no doubt about that. He has had a good record in UTS tournaments and it’s a shy that his stint in UTS Oslo ended in such a manner. He will now play against Denis Shapovalov in the ATP Rotterdam.  

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