Andy Murray has pulled out of the doubles at the Miami Open after picking up an ankle injury in his defeat to Tomas Machac on Sunday. The legendary Scot was a set down when he levelled things up in the second at 5-5, but pulled up sharply as he rushed towards his chair at the end of the game.
The 36-year-old then proceeded to clutch his left ankle and scream in agony as officials called the physiotherapist onto the court. Remarkably though, after lengthy treatment and having his foot strapped, Murray was able to bravely continue before eventually going down 7-5 5-7 7-6 (7-5) in the third-round clash.
World No.60 Machac will now face Italian Matteo Arnaldi in the fourth round. And British hopes were dealt a further blow on Monday when Cameron Norrie went down to Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
After his defeat, a crestfallen Murray admitted the loss was likely to represent his last match in Miami. “I wasn’t thinking about all the matches I played,” he said. “Just more that that’s the last match that I am going play here which is sad because I love it here. I’ve spent so much of my tennis career here and I would have liked it to have gone on a little bit longer.”
The cruel twist of fate came when Murray was aruably showing his best form of the season. Having overcome Matteo Berrettini in his first round match, he then overcame Tomas Etcheverry, gaining revenge for his Australian Open defeat.
Murray had also been due to team up with American Sebastian Korda in the doubles’ event, with the pair drawn against the German pairing of Kevin Krawietz and Tim Putz. But the three-time Grand Slam winner has now pulled out of the match, with him and Korda forced to give a walkover.
The full extent of the damage to his ankle is yet to be revealed, but there is also a possibility that Murray has played the last hard-court match of his career. He’s not due to play again until the clay-court tournament in Monte Carlo next month, which forms part of the build-up to the French Open.
Despite frequent speculation over his future, Murray has continuously refused to set a retirement date. But many fans and pundits have touted him to enjoy his professional swansong at Wimbledon this summer.
That notion could now depend on whether his ankle-injury proves to be long term. But despite initially appearing restricted when he returned to the court, Murray looked to be moving freely again in the deciding set.
