Andy Murray To Play Doubles With Feliciano Lopez At The Queen’s Club

By Alix Ramsay

 

It is official – Andy Murray is on his way back. Scotland’s finest has entered the doubles with Feliciano Lopez at the Fever-Tree Championships at Queen’s Club which starts in two weeks’ time.

 

He and Lopez were the last pair to make the cut as the doubles entry closed – there was a nagging doubt that their joint rankings would not make the cut – and then, much to the relief of all concerned, the man with the calculator did the sums and they were in at the very last moment.

 

It will be Murray’s first appearance on a match court since he had hip resurfacing surgery at the end of January. Back then, his career appeared to be over. For 18 months, he had tried everything he and the medics could think of to repair the damage to his right hip and nothing had worked. He was in agony and his quality of life had deteriorated to the point where he could not tie his own shoelaces without wincing.

 

But from the tearful press conference in Melbourne Park before the start of the Australian Open to the chat a couple of hours later with the British press, things appeared to have changed. In his presser, he said that Australia may be his last tournament. To the Brits, he offered the thought that surgery could be the answer.

 

“There is a possibility it could prolong my career,” he said then. “Hip re-surfacing is something that has been around for 15 years and has been successful for a younger generation for people that have had issues with hips. It allow them to live a very active lifestyle and that is why, I think and understand from speaking to experts, is a better option for somebody of my age.

 

“If I was to stop playing today, that is something I would look at and consider doing because it would allow me to go and play football with my friends and play golf.  Allow me to run around a little bit more freely than with a hip replacement. I’m sure there are some doctors and surgeons out there who would dispute that and say a hip replacement is better. But there are quite a few athletes out there who have gone back to competing after having it done.”

 

And as soon as he said that, the British press corps knew that he would move heaven and earth to give himself one last shot at competing again. That feeling was reinforced when his mum, Judy, told the same gaggle of British hacks that she felt he would leave no stone unturned to try and come back.

 

“He is quite likely to be the one who breaks the mould of getting the absolute max out of whatever,” Judy said. “You just get the sense that there’s something else in him, that he’s not quite ready to quit yet so we’ll see.”

 

Judy knows her boy well. On Monday night, Queen’s Club announced the return of their five-time singles champion (albeit only in doubles) and Murray sounded very chipper about what the future might hold.

 

“I am really excited to return to the match court for the first time since my surgery,” Murray said. “Queen’s has always been a special place for me and it’s the perfect place to return. It’s where I won my first ATP match, my first title in Britain and on grass, and it’s been my most successful tournament overall.

 

“I’m not yet ready to return to the singles court, but I’ve been pain-free for a few months now. I’ve made good progress in training and on the practice court, and this is the next step for me as I try to return to the tour.”

 

Murray has been seen hitting with Dan Evans and Nick Kyrgios and has clearly made huge – and pain-free – strides since the clip of him hitting softly against a practice wall at his local tennis club was posted on social media at the end of March.

 

Wimbledon could well offer him a wild card into any event he likes (although the ladies’ singles is an unlikely one) and suggested a few weeks ago that Murray could leave his decision to play or not until the very last minute. Well, he is a member of the club, after all.

 

Whether Murray would risk a jaunt to SW19 is unknown. All anyone does know is that he will take every step slowly and cautiously to give himself the best chance not only to come back to the singles court but also to stick around when he gets there. As Alex Corretja, Murray’s former coach and current Eurosport commentator, pointed out, Murray has dedicated his life to being the best he can be at tennis. Now that dedication is paying dividends.

 

“It’s awesome news, especially since we never knew if he would be able to make it back on a tennis court,” Corretja said. “This is the first step and means he clearly wants to test himself. Hopefully he will make it back for singles too, but I don’t expect that to happen very soon.

 

“In my opinion, he needs to take it slowly, but he is the one that knows his body of course. He is back this quickly because he is very strong physically. He’s been working so hard for the last 15 years and that’s why now he’s able to come back sooner than expected. The dedication he has for his conditioning is amazing – he spends hours and hours looking after his body.

 

“It’s unbelievable news and I’m very happy for him, for his fans and for the game of tennis.”

Britain’s Andy Murray of Britain in action against Nick Kyrgios of Australia during their first round match at the Fever Tree Championships at Queen’s Club in London, Britain, 19 June 2018. EPA-EFE/NEIL HALL