WIMBLEDON – Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray said Sunday “it's impossible" to know yet whether he will be able to compete at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament, even if he is “feeling better every day” as he recovers from surgery to remove a cyst from his spine.
The 37-year-old Murray is scheduled to play in the first-round of singles at the All England Club on Tuesday. He and his older brother, Jamie, were given a wild-card invitation for doubles, too, and that event starts later in the week.
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The Scot had back surgery on June 22 after needing to stop during a match a few days earlier at Queen's Club. He said the cyst was compressing a nerve and making his right leg numb and difficult to use, and he figured before the operation it was “highly likely” he would miss Wimbledon.
“It's been a tough 10 days,” he said.
Murray played a practice set Sunday.
“It went pretty well, but I still don't have 100% feeling and sensation in my leg,” he said.
Murray plans to undergo medical tests on Monday — the first day of Wimbledon — and play another practice set, and then probably will make a decision in the evening.
Murray owns a total of three major championships: He won the U.S. Open in 2012, and Wimbledon in 2013 and 2016. His 2013 title made him the first British man to win the singles trophy at the All England Club in 77 years.
He also is the only player with two consecutive tennis gold medals in singles at the Olympics. He won at London in 2012 — when the sport’s Summer Games matches were held at the All England Club — and at Rio de Janeiro in 2016.
Murray underwent a pair of hip operations in 2018 and 2019. While he thought he would need to retire after the second surgery, in which he received a metal hip implant, Murray eventually returned to action.
He has since been hampered by various health issues, including tearing ligaments in his left ankle at the Miami Open in March.
Murray lost in the first round of the French Open in May.
He is not the only 37-year-old with multiple Wimbledon championships on his record who is dealing with recovery from recent surgery: Novak Djokovic, who won seven of his 24 Grand Slam titles at the All England Club, had a procedure to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee less than a month ago after getting hurt at the French Open.
Djokovic said Saturday he feels well enough to compete at Wimbledon — and perhaps even contend for another trophy.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis