Being born to parents who are both tennis players will certainly ensure that Skai Monfils grows up around the sport, but her father, Gael Monfils, won't push her into tennis.
There is an interesting trend of players and former players not necessarily wanting their kids to follow in their footsteps. Fabio Fognini famously said that he wouldn't like his kids to go into tennis.
Rafael Nadal shared a similar sentiment, and now Gael Monfils has admitted as well that he wouldn't want to see his daughter go into the sport. Is it a universal feeling among tennis players? Not really.
Serena Williams was quite enthusiastic about her daughter picking up a racquet despite not pushing her into the sport. Many players grow up around the sport, so being born to two tennis players makes it more likely.
Monfils, though, hopes his daughter Skai doesn't end up in the sport because it requires a lot of sacrifice, and he would know best. His wife, Elina Svitolina, is also a tennis player, so they can explain to their daughter what kind of life it would be.
"Please not (on Skai potentially pursuing a tennis career). But I tell everybody it's fine guys. There's a lot of sacrifice. No, the thing is a little bit different for our daughter. If she wants to play, she will play."
"I won't push it. The thing is because she will have a lot of pressure from the beginning, which is tough because she's the daughter of Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils."
Monfils clearly wants only the best for his daughter. Many years ago, when Roger Federer had twins, many joked about the Federer sisters taking over the sport in 20 years.
Any child who comes after their parents is going to face the pressure, and as a parent, Monfils would like to avoid that for his daughter.
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