"Who's the dumb one between you and me?" Monfils reacts with humor to insulting messages on social media

Gaël Monfils won't advance past the first round in Stuttgart. The 38-year-old Frenchman put up a fight but was ultimately eliminated by Alex Michelsen (6-4, 4-6, 6-3) in his first grass-court match since last year's Wimbledon.

After the match, the world No. 42 responded to insulting messages he received from certain bettors, choosing to handle it with humor on his Instagram account.

"Hey guys, this is not financial advice. You keep betting on me, in my first grass-court tournament? I’m playing against Alex Michelsen, a 20-year-old ranked 35th in the world, and you want to bet on me?

You say I’m terrible—I know I’m terrible, we all know I’m terrible—but you still bet on me! So who’s the dumb one between you and me? Also, my leg has already cracked multiple times, I’ve played with a broken leg before. Don’t pray for that to happen.

It’s 2025, and you’re still attacking skin color. Does that have anything to do with performance on a tennis court? Open a few books, do something. The era of insults about skin color is over—get that out of your heads.

If you want to look a little more like me, go out in the sun and use sunscreen to protect your skin. I’ll help you out there. But open some books. And as for insults about my family members… it’s just me.

Whether it’s my mom or my wife (Elina Svitolina), no one else should be involved. If you want to attack someone, just attack me.

Karma will be very bad for you, believe me. Alright, kisses and peace to your soul, as we say in French," Gaël Monfils elaborated in a nearly two-minute video on social media.