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Andy Murray will skip the singles competition at this week's Wimbledon tournament and instead team up with his brother Jamie for one final doubles match.
The 37-year-old Murray withdrew from the men's singles tournament on Tuesday, just hours before his scheduled opening-round match. This decision follows weeks of Murray openly debating whether to play at Wimbledon, which he had announced would be his final Grand Slam.
Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion, has faced health challenges in recent years, including the recent removal of a cyst from his spine that cast doubt on his Wimbledon participation. "As you can imagine, he is extremely disappointed," Murray's representatives told the Associated Press regarding his withdrawal from the singles competition. His management company added that Murray "looks forward to competing at Wimbledon for the last time" alongside his older brother.
A Wimbledon champion in 2013 and 2016, Murray has announced plans to retire after the Paris Olympics later this month. Last month at Queen's Club, he withdrew from a tournament after experiencing numbness in his right leg, which doctors later attributed to the cyst compressing a nerve in his back.
Despite the diagnosis and recent surgery, Murray expressed his determination to compete. "I'm hoping that, with each day that passes, the likelihood of me being able to play will increase," he told reporters over the weekend. "I don't want to be in a situation like at Queen's. I don't want to go on the court and [have it] be awkward or not be able to at least be competitive."
Murray is also set to compete in his fifth Olympics in Paris, where he plans to play both singles and doubles if his health permits.
Murray first gained prominence as a 17-year-old phenom in 2005, winning his first ATP title less than a year after turning pro. By 2008, he had reached his first Grand Slam final at the U.S. Open, though he lost to Roger Federer. In 2012, he secured his first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open with a win over Novak Djokovic. He went on to win Wimbledon twice and became a back-to-back gold medalist at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.
In 2016, Murray became the world's No. 1 tennis player, the first British player to achieve this, and was subsequently knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. However, injuries and back-to-back hip surgeries in 2018 halted his career for nearly two years.
"I've been in a lot of pain for probably about 20 months," Murray said in an emotional press conference at the 2019 Australian Open. He added, "I can't even put my shoes or socks on without any pain."
Earlier this year, Murray reflected on the nearing end of his career following a match at the Dubai Tennis Championships. "I obviously still love competing and still love the game, but it obviously gets harder and harder the older you get to compete with the young guys and keep your body fit and fresh," he said. "I probably don't have too long left, but I'll do as best as I can these last few months."
