Two-time Wimbledon winner Andy Murray has suffered a fresh injury setback ahead of what could be final appearance at his beloved SW19 this summer.
The 37-year-old managed to battle back from a severe ankle problem in time for the French Open, having sustained torn ligaments during March's Miami Open and spending almost two months on the sidelines.
Murray enjoyed brief runs at a Bordeaux Challenger Event and Geneva before a tantalising first-round match with Stan Wawrinka at Roland-Garros, but he went down to the Swiss veteran in straight sets.
The three-time major winner - who is expected to retire at the end of the season - addressed the Paris crowd in the manner of a player who had just completed their French Open swansong, before he and Dan Evans lost their opening doubles tie to Thiago Seyboth Wild and Sebastian Baez.
Having failed to pick up a single victory at the French Open, the grass-court campaign is now Murray's sole focus, and the 37-year-old won two Challenger events in the run-up to Wimbledon last year.
Murray overcame Jurij Rodionov to win the Surbiton Trophy before sinking Arthur Cazaux in the final of the Nottingham Open, but he has announced that he will not be able to defend his title in the former tournament.
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Murray withdraws from Surbiton due to back injury
The former world number one has announced that he is "struggling a little bit" with a back injury, although the issue should not impact his chances of playing at Wimbledon for potentially the final time.
"Unfortunately, I won't be back to defend my title at the Surbiton Trophy this year. It's such a great tournament with amazing fans so it's been a tough decision but one my team and I felt we needed to make," The Independent quotes Murray as saying.
Instead, Murray plans to commence his grass-court preparations at the Stuttgart Open - an ATP 250 tournament - in the week commencing June 10, before competing at the Queen's Club Championships a week later.
The 37-year-old then intends to turn out at the Eastbourne International in his final warm-up competition before Wimbledon gets underway in the first week of July, and he has not ruled out the prospect of competing with brother Jamie Murray in the doubles event.
Murray defeated Novak Djokovic in the 2013 Wimbledon final to win his second Grand Slam title after the 2012 US Open, and he conquered SW19 again in 2016, sinking Milos Raonic in straight sets.
The Briton is also a two-time Olympic champion from the 2012 and 2016 Games and plans to compete at the Paris 2024 event.
Ben Knapton
