Gael Monfils bids emotional farewell to the Australian Open after a 1st-round loss

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — For one last show, Gael Monfils had the crowd chanting his name as he bid adieu to the Australian Open.

There will be no encore at Melbourne Park for the 39-year-old Frenchman, a popular personality around Melbourne Park for decades.

After leading by a set and a break, Monfils lost his first-round match to local qualifier Dane Sweeny 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-4, 7-5 on Tuesday.

It was his 20th Australian Open, his 69th Grand Slam appearance, and a second-round encounter against No. 8 Ben Shelton had loomed for Monfils for much of the afternoon as a capacity crowd at Kia Arena sang and roared.

But 24-year-old Sweeny, who had never previously won a Grand Slam main draw match, simply outdid Monfils at what the Frenchman made a career of doing.

He retrieved at full stretch, he scrambled, he tumbled to the court, and he found a way to hit winners from almost nowhere.

In a break with convention, Monfils remained on court to address the crowd following the winner's on-court interview.

“For me, my journey started,” long ago, Monfils said. “Now we are 2026 and somehow it’s the finish line.”

Monfils announced before the tournament that this year would be his last on the professional tour, concluding a career that included runs to the Australian Open quarterfinals in 2016 and 2021 and semifinals at Roland Garros and the U.S. Open.

His athletic shotmaking and his relentless ability to come back from breaks down has inspired other players.

A day after Novak Djokovic channeled Monfils with a leaping forehand winner in his tournament opener, Monfils produced one of his trademark jumping forehands late in the first set.

But those classic shots weren't frequent enough for Monfils, who regularly went to the side of the court for a towel and often slumped over to lean on his racket in a match that went almost four hours.

Monfils has a career record of 22-21 in Grand Slam matches that went to five sets, and when he was up a break in the fourth it appeared this one would go the distance.

But Sweeny didn’t relent. He had the group of supporters in red-and-yellow Life Guards jerseys at one end, mixing it up with the Tribune Bleue crew waving their French tricolors and chanting for Monfils.

Monfils also had his wife, Elina Svitolina, the No. 12 seed in the women’s draw, in his support crew encouraging him. They couldn't compete with the noise coming from the vocal Aussie fans, many wearing the national sporting yellow and green colors. Some were holding up inflatable kangaroos.

“Thank-you so much for this amazing ride. I’ve got a lot of great memories here. Big battles, quarterfinals,” Monfils said. "Very lucky to play here for many years. Merci beaucoup.”

Gael Monfils of France plays a forehand return to Dane Sweeny of Australia during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Gael Monfils of France plays a forehand return to Dane Sweeny of Australia during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A supporter of Dane Sweeny of Australia reacts during his first round match against Gael Monfils of France at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)

Gael Monfils of France reacts after a rally with Dane Sweeny of Australia during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Gael Monfils of France plays a forehand return to Dane Sweeny of Australia during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

DENVER (AP) — Colorado forward Valeri Nichushkin was involved in a car accident on his way to the rink Monday and was held out of the Avalanche's 5-2 victory over Washington as a precaution.

Coach Jared Bednar said after the game that Nichushkin got checked out at the facility and suffered minor injuries but that “everything seems to be OK.”

“Just not good enough to play tonight,” Bednar said. “We’ll see what tomorrow brings for him.”

Bednar didn't have much information other than saying the roads were icy after an overnight snowfall and that it was a multi-vehicle accident.

“It was a fender bender, but serious enough to keep him out of lineup,” Bednar said. “I’m sorry, I don’t know all the details.”

Nichushkin missed eight games this season with a lower-body injury. He has 11 goals and 16 assists.

The 30-year-old Nichushkin drew a suspension of at least six months in May 2024 and placed in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. The announcement came in the middle of Colorado’s playoff run that year, marking the second straight postseason where the right winger was unavailable because of circumstances away from the ice.

He played in just 43 games last season but was still fifth on the team with 21 goals. It was the third 20-goal season of his career.

With Nichushkin being a late scratch, Colorado quickly placed a call to forward Alex Barré-Boulet, who plays for the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League. Barré-Boulet made the drive down from Loveland, Colorado — about 60 miles — in time for the game and had an assist on the opening goal by Parker Kelly.

It was Barré-Boulet's first NHL point since 2023-24 with Tampa Bay.

Colorado is already missing Gabriel Landeskog (upper body), defenseman Devon Toews (upper) and forward Joel Kiviranta (lower body). Forward Logan O’Connor has yet to play this season as he recovers from offseason hip surgery.

At 34-5-8, the Avalanche have the best record in the NHL. They're paced by the scoring prowess of Nathan MacKinnon, who had two goals against the Capitals to give him a league-best 38 this season. He also had an assist to reach 1,100 career points, joining Hall of Famer Joe Sakic as the only players in franchise history to reach that milestone.

“He's had a hell of a career to this point, and there’s no signs of him slowing down,” Bednar said of MacKinnon. “I’m sure he’s well on his way to another however many points he’s going to get.”

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Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin, left, passes the puck as Nashville Predators defenseman Justin Barron, right, covers in the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)