BILLIE JEAN KING NATIONAL TENNIS CENTER STRICTLY COMEBACK DANCING!

Murray will take a leaf out of Michael Jordan’s ‘Last Dance’ documentary as he defies expert to go for glory again

ANDY MURRAY will channel his inner Michael Jordan when he returns to the US Open for another Last Dance.

The Scot will play his first Grand Slam singles match since the 2019

Australian

Open against

Japan’s

Yoshihito

Nishioka in the first round tomorrow.

The threetime Major champion feared his career was over after his second hip operation before his long road back to New York.

NBA legend Jordan (above), who always played his best at Madison Square Garden, spoke of how he was motivated by perceived slights from opponents and management in a recent Netflix series. Now

Murray, 33, has revealed his anger at a smug surgeon who wrote off his career – and only increased his determination to return to the top of the game.

“It’s been a long journey to get back to this point,” said the world No.134.

“There is one person in particular that helped me. It was the surgeon who told me after Wimbledon in 2017 that I didn’t have long left and could have surgery – resurfacing or hip replacement – but would not play professional sport again.

“It was weird timing. I actually bumped into him the morning after I had my hip resurfacing in London in January 2019 when I took my first steps on the new hip with the crutches.

“And he walked past me in the hallway and he smiled at me and said to my wife, ‘I told him he was going to have to do this’. It just really got me. I was not happy.

“I would say that was the thing that gave me the biggest motivation because, at that moment, I had obviously been going through a difficult time, had the operation and I felt there was a bit of smugness to what he told me.

“That was enough for me. And yeah, I was actually going to send him a bottle of wine to say thanks for the motivation once I had got back on the court competing again, but I haven’t brought myself to do that yet.”

When Murray lost to Roberto Bautista Agut in five emotional sets 20 months ago, Australian Open organisers played a farewell video with tributes from fellow players to the embarrassed five-time Melbourne finalist.

It proved to be premature. But the Scot had admitted before the tournament he could not continue playing through the pain and might quit.

Murray, who played three matches at the Western & Southern Open last week in his first tournament this year, added: “Now I don’t care about people asking me about my hip because it feels fine. The worst part was when I was lying to people or not being totally honest because of the nature of sport I didn’t want to say.

“That is why in Australia I was very upset because it was the first time I had spoken openly about it, but had been struggling for a long time and trying to put a brave face on it.

“Certainly at the time, presurgery and post-surgery, no, I didn’t think I would be able to come back. But with each week and month that passed, I started to believe.

“I was a bit p ***** off I wasn’t allowed to play singles at Wimbledon that year, even though it was only a few months after I had the operation, because I was feeling good with no pain. It was probably not until I got back on tour and played singles that I actually believed it.”