McEnroe: Andy may never be same again
ANDY MURRAY has been warned by John McEnroe he faces being humiliated as he tries to recover from hip surgery and return to the pinnacle of tennis. Murray, 31, has not played a competitive match since Wimbledon last year. He is back on the practice courts but pulled out of next week’s event in Rosmalen and doubts remain over his chances of playing at the All England Club next month. Recalling how he felt in his early 30s, McEnroe said: ‘You keep giving yourself reasons as to why it’s worth it, the upside. You know, it’s worth taking semi-humiliation. ‘I don’t know what will happen, but it will be pretty tough to come back and be better than he was, unless I’m missing something when you have hip surgery. ‘I had some hip issues, I felt like I lost some speed. It’s not a good feeling. You sink to a certain level where you can’t take it any more.’
JOHN McENROE has warned Andy Murray of the feelings of ‘semihumiliation’ he could face if he soldiers on with his career without being able to recapture former glories.
The American legend is basing that on his own experiences towards the end of his time in toplevel tennis when he struggled to reach his previous level.
Murray, 31, is back practising in the hope that he may be able to play on the grass courts this summer, but has pulled out of next week’s ATP event in Rosmalen and is now aiming to compete in the Fever-Tree Championships at Queen’s which begin on June 18.
He is trying to come back from hip surgery, and McEnroe spoke yesterday as someone who had problems in that area too. He does not have inside knowledge of Murray’s condition but fears that it will be a hard road back for his fellow former Wimbledon champion.
Recalling how he felt in his early thirties, McEnroe, who will be commentating for the BBC this year, said: ‘You keep giving yourself reasons as to why it’s worth it, the upside. You know, it’s worth taking semi-humiliation.
‘You’re still out there doing something you love in a way. You’re not as good as you were. I’m not even saying he won’t be (as good as he was). I don’t know what will happen, but it will be pretty tough to come back and be better than he was, unless I’m missing something when you have hip surgery. Maybe they can cure it completely but that’s a pretty tough injury to overcome.’
The American sees what Roger Federer has managed, rediscovering his peak in the past 18 months with little tournament preparation, as a one-off.
‘You see the other guys, it’s not so simple when they try to come back after missing six months or a year. It’s just a different animal.
‘He (Murray) is going to play because he loves to play but I’m sure he would be realistic about what he could do if he did play. When you have a hip problem you have a tendency to be more cautious. I had some hip issues, I felt like I lost some speed. It’s not a good feeling, particularly when guys are hitting it harder than ever, they are just going for it. ‘You sink to a certain level where you can’t take it any more. I felt like I was still one of the top 10 guys but in order to even keep that ranking I had to do a lot more than I was capable of doing in terms of travel with kids and family, and that complicates things.’ Murray (left), who has been pictured practising at Wimbledon with American player Christian Harrison and looking quite thin, is not the only one of the so- called ‘ Big Four’ whose participation on the grass — or level they can reach — looks uncertain.
Novak Djokovic will decide in the coming days what his plans are for the next phase of the season, but his quarter-final defeat to Italian journeyman Marco Cecchinato showed he is still well short of how he was performing two years ago.
‘I think it’s more mental but I don’t know that for sure,’ said McEnroe of the Serb.
‘He had, for him, a very favourable draw (at the French Open). He looked at times to me in some of these longer rallies that he didn’t seem to have quite the same endurance and it seemed to affect him late in the fourth set.
‘Somehow the guy got back in it and then he played the match of his life. There is no question in my mind that (Djokovic) should have won but the guy did pull a rabbit out of the hat.’