Andy Murray has withdrawn from Wimbledon on the eve of the tournament as he continues to recover from hip surgery.
The two-time champion made his long-awaited competitive return after nearly a year out at Queen’s earlier this month, before reaching the second round at Eastbourne this week.
However, Murray has decided he is not yet ready to play best-of-five-set matches after so long out of the sport. He said: “It’s with regret I’m withdrawing from Wimbledon.
“I’ve made significant progress in practice and matches over the last 10 days but, after lengthy discussions with my team and with a heavy heart, we’ve decided that playing best-of-five-set matches might be a bit too soon in the recovery process.
Murray defeated Stan Wawrinka in the first-round at Eastbourne this week to secure his first win since returning from injury
Murray defeated Stan Wawrinka in the first-round at Eastbourne this week to secure his first win since returning from injury
“We did everything we could to try to be ready in time. I will start practising on the hard courts from tomorrow and continuing with my rehab and recovery and I’m looking forward to the US hard-court season.
“Thanks for all the messages of support and I’m excited to finally be back playing after so long out.”
Wimbledon begins on Monday and Murray – whose injury absence meant he was not seeded – was drawn to play Benoit Paire in the first round.
