Andy Murray and his brother Jamie Murray have been granted a main draw wild card in the Wimbledon men's doubles tournament.
The news comes on the back of a stoic response by the three-time Grand Slam champion, who is keeping his options in the singles tournament open as he continues to recover from a back injury.
Murray, 37, underwent a back procedure last week following his retirement at Queen's. Confidential medical details were leaked to the press, evoking anger from his camp and family.
His mother, Judy, repelled the news confirming Murray's withdrawal from Wimbledon and assured the tennis community that his son was "not ruled out yet" from competing at the grass-court major, which could potentially be his last with retirement from sport very much imminent.
The former World No. 1 can't see himself playing beyond the European summer, although his involvement at the Paris Olympics remains possible. Murray has also played doubles at this year's French Open to acclimate to the clay of Roland Garros, which will host the Olympic Games.
The Wimbledon main draw will officially begin on July 1st, and before the draw is revealed on Friday, June 28th, Murray's name is among those who will partake in singles.
He has now accepted a wild card for the doubles tournament, which will start on July 4th. If he can't compete in singles on the opening day, Murray will have at least three extra days to play in doubles.
This will be paramount as he needs every single hour from now on to recover from the injury that has become a pebble in his career. Historically, Murray has struggled with back injuries and missed some major tournaments because of this debilitating health condition.
This will be the first time that Andy and Jamie will play doubles together at Wimbledon, but the two-time former champion at the All England Club played in this competition back in 2019, losing in the second round while playing Pierre-Hugues Herbert.
0 Comments