“He Killed Me Physically!”: Gael Monfils Recalls Match Which Made Him Call Rafael Nadal the ‘GOAT’

Rafael Nadal is known for leaving a lasting impression on both the crowd and his opponents. Gael Monfils is one such player. The Frenchman looked back on his unforgettable experience of playing Nadal in the Monte Carlo Masters 2016 final, which prompted him to call the Spaniard “GOAT”.

Many would consider Nadal’s 2016 season to be among his worst ever, as he failed to win a single Grand Slam. One of the highlights for the Spaniard that year was clinching the Monte Carlo title for the 9th time in his career. Nadal defeated Monfils 7-5, 5-7, 6-0 in the final.

In an interview with Univers Tennis, Monfils claimed that he played the “best match of his life” on clay that day. The first two sets certainly showed that the acrobatic French star had a great chance to breach the Nadal fortress. However, Rafa came back roaring in the third set, pulling off the unlikeliest of bagels to seal the title.

Monfils expressed his helplessness, saying that even though he gave it everything he had, Nadal “killed him physically”. There couldn’t be a greater compliment for Nadal.

“I play the best match of my life on clay and I take 6-0 in the third set. He is above, GOAT! He killed me physically, I gave it my all.”

Quand Gael Monfils raconte l’histoire de sa finale 2016 contre Rafael Nadal à Monte-Carlo :

️ « Je fais le meilleur match de ma vie sur terre battue et je prends 6-0 au troisième set. Il est au dessus, GOAT ! Il m’a tué physiquement, j’ai tout donné »https://t.co/3PCtmhugTY

— Univers Tennis (@UniversTennis) December 14, 2024

Monfils does not have a good head-to-head record against Nadal. The Frenchman has been able to beat the ‘King of Clay’ only twice in their 16 matches against each other. Both wins came on the hard courts of Doha.

He has a similarly poor record against another player from the ‘Big 3’ – Novak Djokovic. Monfils has famously never beaten the Serb in any of their 19 clashes so far. Despite these poor statistics, he maintains massive respect for Djokovic, as shown by his most recent comments about him.

Monfils acknowledges Djokovic’s greatness with Australian Open 2025 comment

In a recent interview with Tennis365, Monfils was asked to pick his favorites for the Australian Open, which is now a month away. While Monfils believes that the top two favorites will be Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, he would never rule out Novak Djokovic to win at least one more Grand Slam in his career.

“Djokovic is still a contender for the Australian Open. Of course, he can win one more Grand Slam in his career, and why can’t it be in Australia, where he has won it so many times? Now he has Andy (Murray) with him, and this is great for the sport.”

Considering that Djokovic will turn 38 in May 2025 and is slowly nearing the end of his career, Monfils mentioning his name without prompting says a lot about the Serb’s aura.