Novak Djokovic has confirmed his withdrawal from next month's Monte Carlo Masters as the Serbian continues to battle a persistent right shoulder problem.
Tournament organisers announced the news on Friday via their social media channels.
"Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the tournament," the statement read. "We send him our best wishes and hope to see him back on court very soon."
The 38-year-old claimed the prestigious clay-court title on two occasions, lifting the trophy in both 2013 and 2015.
Novak Djokovic has pulled out of next month's Monte Carlo Masters
|REUTERS
His absence represents a significant blow for the event, which runs from 5-12 April in Monaco.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has been managing the shoulder complaint for several months now.
This shoulder issue forced Djokovic to skip the Miami Open entirely, marking consecutive high-profile absences from the ATP Tour calendar.
His last competitive appearance came at Indian Wells earlier this month, where Britain's Jack Draper defeated him in the fourth round.
Prior to that loss, Djokovic revealed the intermittent nature of his discomfort. "If I don't serve for five or six minutes, then I feel like the first couple of serves of that game are a bit painful," he told the Tennis Channel.
Jack Draper emerged victorious over Novak Djokovic after an enthralling contest at the Miami Open
| GETTYThe Serbian admitted he felt "out of gas" during portions of his match against Draper.
This withdrawal marks the first time since 2011 that Djokovic will not feature at the Monte Carlo event, having competed in 18 of the previous 19 editions since his debut in 2006.
Stepping away from another major tournament indicates Djokovic has yet to recover fully and may be conserving his fitness for the summer's Grand Slam events.
The French Open and Wimbledon both loom on the horizon, representing two of the sport's most coveted prizes.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz will defend his Monte Carlo crown, with Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev also expected to compete in Monaco.
Djokovic suffered a disappointing early exit at last year's edition, falling to Alejandro Tabilo in the round of 32.
American Taylor Fritz has also withdrawn from the upcoming tournament due to injury, further depleting the field ahead of the clay-court season's opening Masters event.