Andy Murray Out Of Australian Open With Lingering Hip Injury

Andy Murray won’t be competing in this year’s Australian Open.

Andy Murray injury update

The 30-year-old three-time Grand Slam champion announced he will sit out the tournament, which begins January 15, due to an ongoing hip injury.

“Sadly, I won’t be playing in Melbourne this year, as I am not yet ready to compete,” said Murray, who will fly back from Australia to London and “assess all the options”.

“I appreciate all the messages of support and I hope to be back playing soon,” Murray added.

The Scotsman has not played a competitive match since Wimbledon last summer.

Murray explained in an emotional social media post this week that it is demoralizing to still be in poor physical condition despite six months of grueling rehabilitation. He emphasized that surgery was something he still wished to avoid, although he may need to reconsider this view.

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said: “We are fully aware that Andy has been going through a difficult period with his hip and that he’s done everything possible to prepare for the Australian summer.

“Personally, I also know that Andy loves tennis and would do anything to play. This is a very hard decision for Andy and we totally respect it.”

Murray, a former World number one, has fallen to 16th since he was defeated by American Sam Querrey in the Wimbledon quarterfinals last summer. He attempted to return at the US Open in August but withdrew two days before the beginning of the tournament.

Former British number one Andrew Castle says Murray’s career at the highest level will end if he needs to undergo surgery, although he admitted he did not know the severity of Murray’s injury.

“People don’t generally, in sports like tennis, recover from this level of hip injury — assuming it’s either a labrum tear or full on arthritis that requires a new hip,” Castle told BBC Radio 5 live. “Either way, months of physical therapy are required after you have surgery and it’s too central an area, too important to the body’s movement, to come back early from.”

The Scot’s most recent match was a one-set exhibition fixture against Roberto Bautista Agut in Abu Dhabi last week.

He also played an exhibition match against Roger Federer in November, losing 6-3 3-6 10-6 to the 2017 Australian Open and Wimbledon champion.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 05: Andy Murray of Great Britain returns a shot to Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria during his fourth round Men’s Singles match on Day Eight of the 2016 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 5, 2016 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)