Andy Murray says there is “very little chance” of him playing singles at Wimbledon this year as he continues his rehabilitation following hip surgery.
The former world number one has not played on the ATP Tour since losing to Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round of the Australian Open in January and there had been doubts as to whether he would be able to return to competitive action at all due to his ongoing injury problems.
However, after undergoing a successful hip resurfacing operation, Murray now appears to be on the comeback trail and he could feature in the doubles at Wimbledon in July, although he has all but ruled out competing in the singles at this stage.
Speaking to The Times, Murray said: “I would say there is very little chance I would play singles during the grass (season). Potentially doubles, but I’m not trying to get ready for singles just now.
“Because I’ve only just started moving now, to get ready for the grass singles-wise, I would have to be doing that for two and a half to three weeks before Queen’s, and that would only give me five or six days of building up to start running properly. It’s not enough time.”
Murray is a two-time winner at the All England Club, but it seems as though his first chance of adding to his three Grand Slam titles will be at the US Open later this year.
Instead, the likes of defending champion Novak Djokovic, who is priced at 2.50 to win his fifth Wimbledon title, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are expected to be the players to beat as SW19 this year.