Elina Svitolina says she won't change surname to 'Monfils' until she retires, jokes her father would be upset if she played as 'Elina Monfils'
Elina Svitolina has confirmed she will continue using her maiden name for the rest of her playing career instead of being known as "Elina Monfils" following her marriage to Frenchman Gael Monfils.
Svitolina recently tied the knot with Monfils, after which she changed her Twitter and Instagram name to "Elina Monfils". Several live-score websites then updated their databases with her new name, sparking rumors that the Ukrainian could soon change her name on the WTA's official list as well.
But speaking to the media after her first-round win over Laura Siegemund at the Tokyo Olympics, the 26-year-old insisted that she will use her maiden name -- Elina Svitolina -- for the rest of her playing career and that she would only officially change her surname after hanging up her racket.
The former World No. 3 surmised that the websites might have been influenced by the fact that she changed her surname on her social media platforms.
“I do not understand why they have done it," Elina Svitolina said. "Maybe they saw that I had changed it in my social networks. But I am going to play as Svitolina till the very end of my professional career and will change it only after retirement. I had numerous achievements and people know me as Svitolina."
Svitolina then joked that her father would be unhappy if she abandoned her family name during her playing career.
"My father would be upset if I changed my surname and played as “Monfils” (laughs)," continued Svitolina. "I am proud to be Svitolina and my tennis career will always be connected with this surname."
Elina Svitolina will face Ajla Tomljanovic in the second round of the Olympics
Elina Svitolina came through a tough three-setter against Laura Siegemund in the first round of the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday, winning 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. Her reward is a clash with a resurgent Ajla Tomljanovic, who advanced to the second round after her opponent Yaroslava Shvedova retired while trailing 5-7, 2-3.
Svitolina boasts a 3-0 head-to-head advantage against the Australian, but they have not met since Roland Garros in 2018. The Ukrainian has dropped only one set to Tomljanovic, and it remains to be seen if that statistic changes on Monday.
Tomljanovic is playing some of the best tennis of her career, as evidenced by her quarterfinal run at the recently concluded Wimbledon Championships.