Andy Murray has pulled out of next week’s Surbiton Trophy and will start his potentially final grasscourt season in Stuttgart on June 10.
The double Wimbledon champion won the Challenger event in south-west London last year as part of his Wimbledon preparations after skipping the French Open.
This year the world No.75 played in Paris – and the bad weather meant he had to wait until Friday night to play and lose his first round men’s doubles match with Dan Evans.
Murray, 37, only entered Surbiton as a back up option. And although he has been “struggling” with his back during the claycourt season, he will stil play Wimbledon starting on July 1. He has revealed he has spoken to his brother Jamie about entering the men’s doubles.
Speaking before his official withdrawal from Surbiton, Murray said “I think it is unlikely but also I don’t feel like I am letting the tournament down by that. I was asked to enter the tournament because the LTA want to use the wildcards for guys that need them. So they asked if I could enter. I said it was unlikely that I was going to play.”
The three-time Grand Slam ruptured ankle ligaments in March and returned to action at a Challenger event in Bordeaux last month before playing in Geneva and Paris. It was the first time he had played at Roland Garros since 2020 – and the weather delays this week have delayed the start of his grasscourt training.
But Murray, who wants to return to Paris to play the Olympics in July, said: “I don’t regret it. It’s been frustrating for everyone. Obviously when you lose, if you could have said: ‘Okay, you’re going to lose in the first round four days ago, you would regret sticking around’.
“I felt like we had a good chance to do well and we agreed if we were going to play, we would play to try and win the tournament. So, no, I don’t regret playing at all. I have been struggling a little bit with my back the last couple of weeks, so I probably needed a few lighter days anyway.
“I’ll get a chance to get home, start preparing on the grass and hopefully get a few good tournaments there.”
After the Boss Open in Germany, Murray will play the Cinch Championships at Queen’s Club starting on June 17 where he has also entered the doubles with Evans.
The Scot has yet to announce if he will play his final Wimbledon and retire this summer. Before the French Open, he said: “When the time is right, I will stop. I don’t know if I will play past the summer.”
