Andy Murray, who has struggled with injury since the Davis Cup finals six weeks ago, has withdrawn from the ATP Cup, due to start in three cities across Australia on Friday, and the Australian Open, which begins in Melbourne on 20 January.
Minor setbacks to his rehab programme and slow recovery from a pelvic problem have dissuaded the former world No 1 from going back on the Tour until February. He will continue practising at home to build up fitness.
“I’ve worked so hard to get myself into a situation where I can play at the top level and I’m gutted I’m not going to be able to play in Australia in January,” he said on Saturday night.
“After the Australian Open this year, when I wasn’t sure whether I’d be able to play again, I was excited about coming back to Australia and giving my best, and that makes this even more disappointing for me. Unfortunately I’ve had a setback recently and as a precaution, need to work through that before I get back on court competing.”
Murray’s withdrawal from the new ATP Cup initially threw into confusion the participation of the Great Britain team, who needed his protected ranking to earn a place in the tournament. Britain’s leading player, Kyle Edmund, who was in excellent form in the Davis Cup finals, did not have a sufficiently high ATP ranking to enable the team to make the list, and has since committed to playing in Qatar and Adelaide.
However, it is understood the GB team, who will be based in Sydney, will now seek a replacement for Murray. Great Britain have drawn Bulgaria in their first tie of Group C in the new 24-team format, with Dan Evans, ranked 42nd in the world, to open the tie against the world No 424, Dimitar Kuzmanov. Murray was scheduled to play his old rival Grigor Dimitrov in the night match.
Murray had to be persuaded to use his protected ranking when the final details of the ATP Cup were confirmed, so his doubts about his fitness have been in place for a little while. When he chose to spend Christmas at home with his young family rather than commit to his usual winter training block in Miami doubts grew. However, he gave no clear indication until Saturday that he was not fit to travel to Australia.
He picked up an elbow injury when winning his first tournament in two and a half years, in Antwerp in October, and stretched his physical resources to the limit in a tough five-setter against the then world No 179 Tallon Griekspoor in the Davis Cup, during which a groin strain flared.
Murray’s team hope he can return in February – he has entered Rotterdam and Montpellier – but he has given no guarantees. His withdrawal from the Australian leg of his season is a blow to what was shaping as an encouraging comeback from his second hip operation in January. His movement, speed and stamina were improving steadily and, after winning a doubles tournament at Queen’s in the summer, his confidence was high.
Given the physical trauma of surgery and the frustrating stretches he endured after his first hip operation the previous January, Murray can look back on 2019 with satisfaction. He won 11 of 18 matches on the Tour, won titles in singles and doubles, earned $369,000 in ticking-over prize money and had a major documentary, Resurfacing, which went into some detail about his fight to return.
However, he has said several times he will not rush his comeback, at the age of 32, in what is clearly the final stage of his long career. Murray hopes to keep playing for as long as he can and his major target in 2020 will be defending his Olympic title in Tokyo.
That seems the most realistic route back for Murray to win major honours, given the early matches in the Olympic tournament are the best of three sets. The prospect of enduring a fortnight’s examination of his fitness and form in best‑of‑five matches at the highest level in a grand slam tournament do not look promising.
Murray has been more relaxed about his career since coming through the hip problem, which threatened to end his playing days after his first-round lost to Roberto Bautista Agut at the Australian Open 12 months ago. Patience has been a virtue so far; he is not about to abandon that and risk a further setback.
