Arthur Fils Will Skip Monte-Carlo to “Properly Prepare” for Clay Season

Arthur Fils missed six months due to a stress fracture in his back, returning to the tour in February to begin his rise up the rankings.

After reaching the final in Doha, then back-to-back quarterfinals at Indian Wells and Miami, Fils has elected to take time to regroup in Europe. He announced on Instagram on Thursday that he will skip this year’s Monte-Carlo Masters in order to prepare for the clay season.

“Back on tour for a few weeks now,” Fils wrote. “Still a long way to go but the motivation is there! We decided not to play the 2026 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters to properly prepare for the rest of the clay season.”

Fils, who has played 18 matches (winning 13) since returning to the tour in Montpellier in early February, has taken steps to reduce the load on his body, shortening his forehand swing a touch and even altering his service motion to make it more rhythmic.

The 21-year-old and his camp are interested in preserving his body for the long term, and he is also eager to take some time to practice with recently hired coach Goran Ivanisevic in Europe.

Fils went 10-4 on clay last year, reaching the quarterfinals in Monte-Carlo and the semifinals in Barcelona, as well as making a third-round appearance at Roland-Garros, which ended with the back injury. He handed Andrey Rublev a walkover due to the injury that eventually put him on the sidelines.