World No. 6 Elina Svitolina is facing widespread backlash from fans, analysts and media outlets following her Monday announcement that she and longtime partner Gael Monfils are divorcing.

Svitolina cited the mental toll of the war in Ukraine as a key reason for her decision, while thanking Monfils for providing “strength and grace” as she navigated her grief. However, she refused to blame anyone or anything for her divorce.

“Please know that there is no one to blame here,” she wrote. “There are only two people who loved each other deeply and a story that is changing shape.

“We ask for your kindness and for the space we need to heal.”

Gael Monfils Shocked by ‘Abrupt’ Divorce

According to L’Equipe’s Franck Ramella, Monfils — who earlier announced that 2026 was his final year as a tennis pro — was stunned by Svitolina’s “abrupt” decision.

“This wasn’t the ending Gaël Monfils had hoped for, the one he’d have envisioned as a final, thunderous roar of emotion accompanied him to the very end at the Plenitude Arena,” wrote Ramella.

“But, in this turmoil born of an unexpected turn of events, it wasn’t a senseless, typical “Monfils ending” either, a career not lacking in such unpredictable moments. No.”

The report also implied that Svitolina’s decision played a role in Monfils calling it a day.

“When Monfils learned the news, it hit him like a ton of bricks, and tennis, which he had often experienced as a kind of gentle madness, lost all meaning.

“He was no longer able to play,” added Ramella.

Elina Svitolina Faces Backlash

Tennis fans rallied around Monfils while directing their criticism toward Svitolina.

“How can you correlate your marriage to a f***ing war…,” wrote one fan.

“The most bizarre way to end a marriage,” wrote a fan.

“What a weird thing to Post online for the world to see.”

“Heartless. This is awful.”

“Biggest word salad ever. It’s like asking ChatGPT to write some abstract reason for getting divorced,” wrote another fan.

Svitolina’s decision is all the more shocking given how Monfils gushed over their marriage at the French Open in May.

“We’ve been together for eight beautiful years,” Monfils said during an emotional on-court interview.

“I’m not talking about Elina Svitolina the player, I’m talking about the woman, the real woman, my wife. She’s always known how to support me as a man.”

In her statement, Svitolina thanked Monfils for supporting her through her “darkest moments” — many of which stemmed from the Russia-Ukraine war.

“He never let go of my hand,” she wrote. “We fought through this together for a long time, with everything we had. But some battles happen deep inside you, and no amount of love from someone else can win them for you.

“With time, I came to understand that I need to find my way back to myself and that I cannot do that within our marriage,” she lamented.