Gael Monfils’ appointment as France’s Davis Cup captain certainly came out the blue as the Frenchman earned his first role in tennis following his retirement.

Monfils brought an end to his career at the US Open, after his divorce to Elina Svitolina forced him to miss tournaments in Lyon and the Paris Masters.

It was confirmed that he would replace Paul-Henri Mathieu to try and change France’s Davis Cup fortunes around, as they have not win the event since the 2017 season.

However, many suggested Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was overlooked for the role after their were whispers the Frenchman was set to be appointed into the role.

More tennis news

Tsonga has refuted those claims, though, and suggested Monfils is the right man to take the French team forward.

Speaking to French media, Tsonga said: “People need to stop getting into these ridiculous controversies. I’m super happy for my friend Gaël to be able to take over the French team again. I think it’s a very good thing.

“Not to say that what was done before wasn’t good quality. But to say that I think he’s the right person today. To bring the players together, to perhaps bring back even greater enthusiasm among the best French players. I was never really a candidate.

“In any case, I wasn’t approached by the federation to be one. I think they made their choice. And unlike last time, I think they decided we weren’t going to qualify 10 and then reject 9. Which wasn’t necessarily the best idea. Everything was done in the right way.

“There are always those who are disappointed. I’m not one of them because I wasn’t a candidate. Journalists came to me and asked, ‘Would you like to be Davis Cup captain?’ The thing is, you can’t say no, you have to say yes.

“Because in the future, it’s a position that could interest me. But suddenly, you become a candidate even though you haven’t spoken to anyone. Nothing has been offered to you, no specific role. Today, I wasn’t a candidate, at least not of my own volition.”

Tsonga has stuck around in tennis, however, since retiring from the sport in the 2022 season. He is currently the tournament director at the Lyon Open, which returned to the ATP Tour calendar in 2026.

He also appeared at the Paris Masters this year, a tournament he famously won back in the 2008 season.

Tsonga was also part of the France Davis Cup team that won the title back in 2017 and the Frenchman appeared in the final against Belgium.

He picked up a victory against Steve Darcis and lost to David Goffin as France beat Belgium 3-2 to lift the title.