Andy Murray has played his final singles match at Wimbledon after the two-time champion made the ‘very difficult’ decision to withdraw from his first round match this morning.
A statement from the 37-year-old’s team said: ‘Unfortunately, despite having worked incredibly hard on his recovery since his operation just over a week ago, Andy has made the difficult decision not to play the singles this year.
“As you can imagine, he is very disappointed but has confirmed that he will play doubles with Jamie and is looking forward to competing at Wimbledon for the last time.”
That means Murray’s five-set loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas on Centre Court in the second round last year will go down in history as his final singles match at the All England Club.
Murray was reduced to a limping wreck at the Queen’s Club two weeks ago when a cyst that had been growing on his spine and pressing on his nerve suddenly immobilised his right leg.
Andy Murray lost his battle for form by withdrawing from singles tournaments at his last Wimbledon
Murray practiced on Monday afternoon but decided today that he was not fit enough.
In a statement, his team said Murray was “extremely disappointed” to withdraw.
The decision was made as fans were just entering the gates of the All England Club.
Murray underwent surgery to remove a spinal cyst after withdrawing at Queen’s (pictured), putting his participation in the men’s singles at Wimbledon in serious jeopardy.
The Scot underwent surgery to remove the cyst on July 22 and has since been fighting against the odds in the hope of being able to play the singles here one last time.
She said the nerve pain had been reducing each day and she had played some sets in practice, but on Monday it was clear her movement was still significantly reduced.
Murray told a news conference on Sunday that he was not so worried about the physical consequences of playing, revealing that the only risk was the reopening of the small wound from the surgery.
What is likely to have influenced her decision not to compete is the fear that her final match would be incredibly one-sided, with no way of running the court properly, or even a repeat of the horrific scenes at Queen’s, when she won five games before retiring.
“I want to go out there and be able to play at a level that I’m happy with,” he said Sunday. “I don’t want to be in a situation like I was at Queen’s. I don’t want to go out there and have it be uncomfortable or not be able to at least be competitive.”
Judging by what we’ve seen of him in training this week, an “awkward” ending seemed very possible. Instead, Murray will give himself at least a couple more days before beginning his final dance at Wimbledon in the doubles with his brother Jamie, probably starting on Friday or Saturday. Not a bad way to say goodbye.
It is certainly a hard blow for the tournament.
She had resumed training on Tuesday afternoon, but will now focus on doubles.
One of the dilemmas for Murray has been balancing his appetite to return to playing on Centre Court, while also acknowledging that he wants to play knowing he can win matches.
“We’d love to see him on court,” Bolton said. “Of course, if he’s not there, we’ve got a lot more tennis ahead of us, but I know the fans will be absolutely desperate to see him play, so we wish him all the best on court.”
Murray confirmed last week that he plans to make Wimbledon and the Olympics the last events of his career.
Ahead of this tournament, and with Murray’s place in singles in doubt, John McEnroe reiterated calls for a statue of Murray to be unveiled at Wimbledon to honour the triple Grand Slam winner’s achievements in the sport.
There has long been talk of a statue of the Scot on the grounds of the All England Club, where in 2013 he became the first Briton to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. In McEnroe’s mind, the correct result is clear.
“If I had to make that decision, I would say absolutely yes, because it’s a very long drought, 77 years,” said McEnroe, a three-time SW19 champion who is back on the BBC’s coverage this summer.
Murray became the first British men’s champion since Fred Perry to lift the trophy at Wimbledon in 2013.
Murray explained last week that he was desperate to “feel the excitement”.
“He has completely changed the way people view British tennis. He is one of the best competitors I have ever seen play tennis.
‘It would be well deserved and it would be incredible, because two of her three Grand Slam victories (2013 and 2016) were at Wimbledon, in addition to the Olympic Games (gold medal in 2012).
‘He was part of the ‘big four’ and finished 2016 as the best player in the world.
“It’s a shame that injuries prevent him from being talked about in the same way as before. Now it’s like he’s one of the ‘big three’.”
“There’s a saying I’ve used many times: ‘The older I get, the better I used to be’. And unfortunately, when you have injuries, it’s quite difficult, if not impossible, to get back to that level you were at.”