'I wanted to play Monte Carlo, but it was impossible,' said Dominic Thiem

World no. 4 Dominic Thiem will not compete at the season's second Masters 1000 tournament in Monte Carlo in April, needing more time to recover physically.

Dominic has been dealing with a minor foot injury after the Australian Open, suffering early losses in Doha and Dubai and withdrawing from Miami. The Austrian is currently working at home on clay and will try to make a comeback at Serbia Open later in April. Thus, Thiem will not compete in Monte Carlo for the first time since debuting in the Principality in 2014.

The Roland Garros and Masters 1000 contender on the slowest surface, Dominic never produced his A-game in Monte Carlo, winning only six out of 12 matches and failing to reach the semis.

Thiem suffered early losses in 2014 and 2015, while Rafael Nadal halted him in 2016 and 2018. Two years ago, Dominic experienced a heavy defeat against Dusan Lajovic, getting broken five times and never finding his rhythm to stay away from the title chase.

"I needed a break after Doha and Dubai; I'm not at 100% yet. I'm so sorry, I would have loved to play in Monte Carlo, but it won't work out. I'm having tough weeks ahead of me; I have a lot of work to do," said Dominic Thiem.