UTS Oslo: Gael Monfils Disqualified After Friendly Exchange Results in Tournament Supervisor Sustaining Injury

French tennis player Gael Monfils was disqualified from the Ultimate Tennis Showdown in Oslo, Norway following a playful exchange that resulted in tournament supervisor Stephane Apostolou sustaining a minor injury.

Despite the DQ, UTS recognised that there was no malice in the intentions of the French player and extended an invitation for Monfils to return to the next edition of the tournament, which was started in 2020 to make tennis more appealing to casual viewers.

The 37-year-old opened his 2024 UTS bid with a 15-12, 17-8, 16-9 defeat against Alex de Minaur and was set to face off against Benoit Paire, but was replaced by  Lucas Pouille after the incident.

UTS shared a post that read, “A playful exchange in the locker room between Gael Monfils and the tournament supervisor Stephane Apostolou resulted in a minor injury to the supervisor. UTS is 100% satisfied that there was no malice intended from Gael but because there was an injury sustained by an official, however minor, we felt there was no alternative but to disqualify Gael. Gael accepted the disqualification and he and the supervisor parted on friendly terms. See you next time @Gael_Monfils”

Monfils also took to social media platform X, formerly Twitter to clear things from his end and shed some light on the incident.

“I want to tell everyone what happened at UTS in Oslo. As per the release from UTS directly, there was no malice or negativity on my part. No abuse, no violence. However, 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. 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, GM”, he posted.

Monfils is one of the most loved players on tour known for his friendly persona and flamboyant antics.

Ever since its inception, UTS has gone on to become a series of multi-tournament leagues with a huge prize pool attracting some of the top players in the world.