Gael Monfils and the former professional Mikael Tillström have ended their coaching cooperation after more than two years of cooperation.
The Frenchman and the Swede had been a team since October 2015 – and celebrated some successes: Under Tillström, Monfils won the 500cc tournament in Washington in 2016, reached the Masters 1000cc final in Monte Carlo and the semi-finals of the US Open in New York. Monfils also qualified for the ATP World Tour Finals this season, finishing sixth in the world rankings.
Tillström wanted to spend more time with his family, a press release said. He also works as Head of Sports at the Good-to-Great Tennis Academy, which limits his travel. “I really enjoyed my time with Gael. He is an extraordinary player – and more importantly: a great person. “We remain close friends and I wish him all the best for the rest of his career.”
Monfils said: “I am sorry to see Mikael go, but I thank him for his work and commitment. We have achieved great success. I will now consider how to proceed and plan the next steps with my team.”
Monfils, thrown back by many injuries and currently number 43 in the world, was last in the third round of the French Open, where he lost to David Goffin in five sets. He is currently curing a disease in Paris. Last year he had to end his season after the US Open due to a thigh injury and had started with a tournament victory in Doha in 2018.