Czech teenager Jakub Mensik pulled out of the Monte Carlo Masters less than two hours before his first-round match against Fabian Marozsan on Monday. The draw sheet listed the reason as a toe injury. Damir Dzumhur entered as a lucky loser replacement.
The withdrawal came early on day three of the tournament at the Monte Carlo Country Club. Roberto Bautista Agut had already retired just 23 minutes into his opening match on Court Rainier III. Organizers quickly drafted Dzumhur, who had time to prepare after Tomas Etcheverry's three-set win on Court des Princes finished Mensik's scheduled slot opened up while Grigor Dimitrov and Etcheverry were still playing. Avantage Tennis confirmed the news on social media, noting Dzumhur took Mensik's place in the draw. No detailed reason beyond 'toe' was provided publicly. The 20-year-old Mensik, who reached a career-high No. 12 ranking in March, has dropped to world No. 26 after early exits in the Sunshine Double. He won his second ATP title in Auckland this year, beating Sebastian Baez, and upset Jannik Sinner in Doha. Mensik also withdrew from the Australian Open fourth round last year due to an abdominal injury before facing Novak Djokovic. This marks his second straight year skipping Monte Carlo, a non-mandatory Masters 1000 event. The tournament has seen a wave of high-profile absences, including Djokovic for the first time since 2011, Taylor Fritz with a knee issue, Jack Draper, Sebastian Korda with a back injury, Frances Tiafoe, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Kamil Majchrzak. Unlike other Masters events, skipping Monte Carlo carries no ranking penalties or fines for top players.
