Should Felix Auger-Aliassime received a bye to the third round in Monte Carlo?

The clay court season is now underway in men’s tennis this week with the Monte Carlo Masters. On Tuesday it was announced that world number three Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, the reigning Wimbledon champion, and 2022 United States Open champion, would miss the 2024 Monte Carlo Masters with a right forearm injury.

The tournament began on Monday with first round action and continued on Tuesday. Due to the fact Alcaraz was a top eight seed, he got an automatic bye to the second round. Meanwhile, Alcaraz’s second round opponent Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada beat Italian qualifier Luca Nardi 6-2, 6-3, in the first round.

Due to the fact that Auger-Aliassime won his first round match, and Alcaraz has pulled out of the tournament, common sense would suggest that Auger-Aliassime would go immediately to the third round. That would instantly happen at a grand slam. Not so fast in this situation. Under the current rules in ATP events where a player gets a first round bye and withdraws from the tournament, he is replaced by a lucky loser. In this situation, it is Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego.

Most people would not have a problem with a lucky loser coming into the tournament in round one, but a lucky loser going into the tournament in round two and getting a first round bye as a result is downright ridiculous and quite frankly absurd. So, as a result Auger-Aliassime is playing a second round match he should not have had to play if the ATP used common sense.