Andy Murray suffers setback and could miss Wimbledon

Andy Murray is a doubt for Wimbledon amid growing fears that the 30-year-old Scot will never again be seen on a tennis court.

It’s 301 days since Murray last served a competitive ball - in the quarter-final of the 2017 Wimbledon Championships - and ever since he’s been battling a debilitating hip injury.

According to The Times, Murray has suffered “a setback during his rehabilitation” from surgery and his participation at grass-court tournaments this summer is in jeopardy.

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Initially the British men’s No.1 had hoped to be back in action at last week’s ATP Challenger event in Glasgow, partnering 17-year-old Aidan McHugh in the doubles, but he withdrew and has since gone to ground.

The Times claims that Murray continued to practise at the All England Club last month “but then brought a halt to training sessions about a fortnight ago”. He has not trained since and the paper adds that the two-time Wimbledon champion has also pulled out of several commercial commitments.

Murray was scheduled to relaunch his singles career at the Libema Open in Holland on 11 June but that is unlikely given recent events. Contacted by the Times yesterday, Murray’s management team refused to comment on the health of the player, but it’s no secret that he is struggling to work his way back to fitness after surgery.

In a recent interview with The Washington Post, Murray compared this rehab to that he experienced five years ago when he suffered a back injury.

“There’s been a lot more ups and downs this time,” he said. “It’s been longer and a lot more complex than the back issue. Having been through a back injury and a difficult surgery before helps, but the back injury was easier because I was back on the court competing quite soon afterwards.”

It was only a year ago that Murray was the world’s No.1 - the first Briton to top the rankings since they were introduced in 1973 - but he is now about to slip to 45, and the Times notes that “if he does not play at all by the end of Wimbledon, he will lose his ranking completely”.