by Andy Murray has withdrawn from the early stages of the European clay court season and continues to weigh his options as he races to be fit for Wimbledon in the final season of his career after tearing his ankle at the Miami Open last weekend.
As he considers his next move, Murray has now been ruled out until at least April 21 after pulling out of the Monte Carlo Masters, which starts in just over a week on April 7, and the ATP Munich event 250, which starts on April 15. . The next grand slam tournament, Roland Garros, will begin on May 26.
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On Sunday, Murray suffered a complete rupture of his anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) and also tore his calcaneofibular ligament (CFL), both ankle ligaments, in a dramatic 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 loss (5 ) to Tomas Machac from the Czech Republic in the third round of the Miami Open.
Murray was playing his best tennis of an otherwise difficult season in Miami but just as the 36-year-old’s fortunes rose, he suffered a grim setback. He had launched a late comeback from 2-5 down in the third set but injured his right ankle badly while leveling the match at 5-5. Although he fought to the end without even bandaging his ankle, and almost won the game, Murray later announced the ligament tear.
After tests were held in Miami immediately the next day, Murray consulted with experts when he returned to the UK. Depending on the injury itself, a ruptured ATFL may heal with rest and rehabilitation or through keyhole surgery, which may take several months to heal. Murray has yet to decide on his next course of action, but for now it appears he is seeking more conservative treatment.
In an update on Friday, Murray’s management described his situation as disappointing, but noted that he is determined to return to the court as soon as possible.
“At this stage, it is still unclear how long Andy will be out of action, and he is continuing to review options with his medical team,” the update read. “This is obviously disappointing for Andy and he reiterated his desire to get back on court as soon as possible.”
This injury, the most significant Murray has suffered since undergoing hip resurfacing surgery in January 2019, is particularly noteworthy given the timing. The three-time grand slam champion only recently publicly confirmed his plans to retire at the end of this summer after considerable speculation and questions.
After his victory in Miami, before he knew the full extent of the injury, Murray gave his most definitive statement on the matter: “I’m really looking forward to the end now, do my best for the next few months and then I’ll be looking forward to the end. home with my family.”
In his final year on tour, Murray looks set to embark on his longest clay season since the onset of his hip problems, with Roland Garros winding down. But the highlight of the summer, of course, is on home soil at Wimbledon, where Murray is a two-time champion and still considers himself one of the world’s best grass-court players.
Wimbledon is now just three months away, and not only is his participation up in the air, but he is also desperate to ensure he arrives at the grass court season in good playing shape to give himself the best chance. resurrection run.
It is not clear where Murray intends to stop, but there will be plenty more to play for him if he is fit, 12 days after the end of Wimbledon, the Paris Olympics begin. As a two-time Olympic singles gold medalist and mixed doubles silver medalist, Murray is also highly regarded for the Olympics, but has said he only intends to play if he has a chance to medal. to win.
Even if Murray narrowly missed the entry cutoff for the Olympics, he would still be eligible for a quota place as a former Olympic gold medalist and grand slam champion. A more realistic chance of an Olympic medal on clay at Roland Garros, however, would be in the men’s doubles competition. As a Top 10 player, Great Britain’s Joe Salisbury, world number 6, can choose any player in the top 300 to partner with. His partnership with Murray appears to be the smartest move since the Tokyo Games, where they narrowly lost in the quarter-finals.
The final grand slam tournament of the year, the US Open, is very meaningful to Murray, where he won his first major title in New York 12 years ago.
Halfway through his match against Machac in Miami, he felt that Murray was turning a corner. Instead, all of those positives from his level and persistent desire to battle were immediately stripped away by this unexpected injury, and it remains to be seen if he can continue his retirement timeline down the road. which he hoped. In the coming weeks and months, Murray will have to make significant decisions about his season.
