ANDY IN SW19 FITNESS BATTLE
Could No 1 seed Andy be out of Wimbledon?
FEARS are growing about Andy Murray’s fitness to defend his Wimbledon title next week. The world No 1 did not turn up for either of his scheduled practice slots at the All England Club yesterday, having withdrawn from an exhibition match on Tuesday citing a sore hip. Murray (left), who was confirmed as No 1 seed yesterday, also pulled out of a gentle hit in aid of Tim Henman’s charitable foundation. The 30-year-old is said to have gone to a session of gyrotonic — a stretching technique using pulleys and levers. His preparations were already disrupted by his early exit from the Aegon Championships at Queen’s Club last week, and his reshuffling of his schedule in the lead-up to Wimbledon would appear to suggest that all is not entirely well.
AFTER being seeded number one at Wimbledon for the first time yesterday, Andy Murray should have been brimming with confidence and the nation preparing to cheer him to victory.
But unfortunately for both the defending champion and the public’s hopes, there was just one thing standing in the way – a dodgy hip.
After the triumph of last year’s championships, 2017 has been marked by disappointment and injuries for the 30-year-old Scot, who yesterday pulled out of two scheduled practice sessions and even failed to lift his racket during a charity knock-up.
With days to go before the Wimbledon tournament, he is understood to have swapped tennis for physiotherapy, leaving the nation holding its breath and wondering if he will even make it the courts at all.
Murray is said to have headed to Fulham Football Club for a session of ‘gyrotonic’, a stretching technique used by yoga lovers that helps to increase spine flexibility.
Not since David Beckham broke a bone in his foot ahead of the 2002 World Cup finals or Wayne Rooney’s injury sent football fans into a spin in 2006 have tensions soared so high.
First there was Queen’s last week, when Murray, watched by wife Kim, crashed out in the first round against a player ranked 89 places below him despite having been crowned tournament champion five times.
Then he pulled out of an exhibition match on Tuesday at the Hurlingham Club in west London, suffering from hip pain. Sources close to him said the decision was ‘precautionary’.
And yesterday eyebrows were again raised when he was unable to take on guests at a Tim Henman Foundation event, leaving many concerned.
Murray had been billed as the highlight of the charity event at Roehampton, but those who had been due to spend two hours hitting balls with him were left playing with coach Jamie Delgado as Murray twiddled his thumbs on the sidelines.
His top seed ranking, above Novak Djokovic in second, Roger Federer in third and Rafael Nadal in fourth, came after a year that has been blighted by ill health, including shingles, a torn tendon in his right elbow and several bouts of flu.
As many crossed their fingers for Murray, fellow Briton Johanna Konta offered tennis fans a glimmer of hope as she stormed up the table to be seeded sixth – the highest for a British woman since Virginia Wade in 1979.
DEFENDING champion Andy Murray will be the men’s top seed at Wimbledon which begins on Monday. With Novak Djokovic the second seed, Roger Federer third and Rafael Nadal fourth it is the first time since Wimbledon 2014 that the ‘Big Four’ have been named top seeds for a Grand Slam. The man Murray beat in last year’s Aegon and Wimbledon finals, Milos Raonic, is said to be contending with injury and a viral illness that hit him last week during Queen’s, where he, like Murray, lost in the first round. Canadian Raonic is seeded six, one place higher than his world ranking, due to the formula Wimbledon employs which takes into account the grass court pedigree of the men ranked in the world’s top 32. The women’s seeding list mirrors the top 10 rankings, although pregnant world No 4 Serena Williams is absent. Britain’s Jo Konta will have her highest Grand Slam seeding at No 6.