Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray retired injured at Queen’s with leg numbness and had spinal surgery; Murray hoping to make farewell Wimbledon appearance this summer but “more likely not to be in singles”; Wimbledon announced Murray and brother Jamie granted doubles wildcard
Image: Andy Murray is hoping to play at Wimbledon and will make a decision 'as late as possible' to give himself the best chance of featuring
Andy Murray will leave a decision on his participation at Wimbledon “as late as possible” as he aims to give himself “the best chance” of making what could be his last appearance at the event.
Murray, Wimbledon champion in 2013 and 2016, had surgery on a spinal cyst on Saturday after retiring at Queen’s during his second-round match against Jordan Thompson following numbness in his right leg, with the Scot later saying he wished he had not gone on court.
With Wimbledon beginning on Monday, Murray’s team released a statement revealing the 37-year-old had resumed training and that he is “working towards” participating, although Murray said that “it’s probably more likely that I’m not able to play singles right now.”
The All England Club announced on Thursday night that Murray and older brother Jamie were granted a wildcard entry for men’s doubles.
- Andy Murray’s injury timeline since 2017
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The men’s singles draw will be made on Friday.
Murray – who has indicated he will soon retire from tennis, with this summer’s Olympics in Paris a “fitting” endpoint – could still play in doubles with brother Jamie.
The statement from Murray’s team read: “Andy is recovering well from his surgery and has started training again.
“At this stage it is too soon to confirm for definite whether he will play Wimbledon, but he is working towards that and a final decision will be made as late as possible to give him the best chance of competing.”
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Murray said he rued going on the court after retiring with a back injury during his match against Australian Jordan Thompson at the Queen’s Club
‘I don’t want Queen’s to be my last time on a tennis court’
Murray said: “Maybe it’s my ego getting in the way, but I feel that I deserve the opportunity to give it until the very last moment to make that decision.
“If I was to be playing on Monday, I may know on Sunday there’s no chance that I can play. It’s complicated and it’s made more complicated because I want to play at Wimbledon one more time.
“I don’t want the last time that I play on a tennis court to be what happened at Queen’s. I know there’s more important things in the world than how I finish playing my last tennis match.
“But because of what I put into the sport over the last however many years, I would at least like to go out playing a proper match where I’m at least competitive.
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Emma Raducanu relates to Murray’s injury struggles and hopes that he will be fit to play at Wimbledon
“I was made aware that if I decided to try to play Wimbledon that there’s some risk associated with that and it’s whether or not I’m willing to take on that risk. The operation has gone really, really well and I’m recovering really well.
“I’m not in much pain at all, but the nature of nerve injuries is that they’re quite slow to recover.
“I don’t know exactly how long it’s gonna take for the nerve to get to a stage where I’m able to compete or play, whether that’s three days or whether it’s three weeks or five weeks. It’s impossible to say.”
Murray could play on if he is not fit for Wimbledon or Olympics
Murray, who won Olympic gold at Wimbledon in 2012 and in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, was named in Great Britain’s squad for the 2024 Games.
He is hoping to play singles as well as in the men’s doubles with Dan Evans at Roland Garros from Saturday July 27.
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Murray relives some of his favourite memories while giving a tour of Queen’s.
“I can’t say for sure that if I wasn’t able to play at Wimbledon and I didn’t recover in time to play at the Olympics that I wouldn’t consider trying to play another tournament somewhere.
“But if I’m able to play at Wimbledon and if I’m able to play at the Olympics, that’s most likely going to be it.”
Olympic entries will be confirmed next week but there is an injury doubt around Evans, who suffered a knee injury after slipping and falling at Queen’s.
Murray said he has a family holiday scheduled after the Olympics and is not planning on travelling over to New York for the US Open, which is live on Sky Sports between Monday August 26 and Sunday September 8.
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Murray got a feeling of what it’s like to chat with himself as he was interviewed by comedian and impressionist Josh Berry
‘Special sportsman Murray deserves to go out with a bang’
Sky News’ Jacquie Beltrao:
“Murray does want to say goodbye so it is the worst possible timing for him when he is planning his retirement.
“He wants that to go perfectly considering how much work he has put into this sport, into his multiple rehabs.
“He deserves to go out with a bang on a tennis court and not limping off the way he did at Queen’s. I think he feels that.
“Having won at Wimbledon twice, ending the 77-year wait for a British men’s singles champion, having won the Davis Cup, having won the ATP finals, having won the US Open… all of those things in the golden era of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
“He really is a special sportsman and deserves [a fitting send-off].”
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