Murray’s hip hell!
He’s still limping just days before opening match at Wimbledon
Britain’s Wimbledon hopes could be dashed before the tournament even begins – as the nation’s top players both face worrying injury battles.
reigning champion and top seed andy Murray was spotted limping and grimacing at practice yesterday as he nurses a sore hip.
and Johanna Konta – tipped to be Britain’s best hope in the tournament for more than 30 years – has hurt her back in a nasty fall which left her sobbing.
Murray, 30, who is struggling with a niggling hip injury, appeared to wince in pain during a session at the Wimbledon practice courts yesterday.
the British ace had to grit his teeth and contort his body to hit the ball. the world number one was also seen struggling to pick something up and clutching his knee. at one moment he closed his eyes and appeared to throw his head back in frustration.
Even as he went to put on his shirt, a grimace spread across the scot’s face. afterwards, Murray appeared exhausted, closing his eyes and wiping his brow on court.
Meanwhile, Miss Konta, 26, suffered the spinal injury as she beat world number one angelique Kerber at the aegon international in Eastbourne on
Thursday. The British number one – who won the Miami Open in April – pulled out of the semi-final yesterday and said she would have to ‘wait and see’ if she was fit enough for Wimbledon. Ranked world number seven, she is the first British woman to rank in the top ten ahead of the tournament since 1984.
But she said yesterday: ‘I had a bit of a nasty fall. I made the decision based on the fact that I am still quite sore through my thoracic spine and I’m looking to make sure I recover in the best way possible. Obviously next week is Wimbledon but I made this decision according to my health.’
Konta has also been handed a tough draw against Taiwan’s Su-Wei Hsieh, who is ranked 112th but knocked her out of the French Open in May. Murray said he still plans to open the tournament with his firstround match on Monday.
He pulled out of two exhibition matches at the Hurlingham Club this week and looked uncomfortable during an hour-and-a-half practice at the All England Club yesterday. Yet asked if he would play, he said: ‘I hope so, that’s the plan.’
Murray faces tattooed Wimbledon newcomer Alexander Bublik, 20, ranked 134th, on Centre Court at 1pm. Murray’s draw means he could have to beat Rafael Nadal in the semis and seven-time champ Roger Federer in the final – setting up a possible replay of his tear-jerking 2012 loss.
ANDY MURRAY and Jo Konta will try to meet the expectations of their home public at Wimbledon next week with significant doubts over their exact levels of fitness.
The British men’s No1, the defending Wimbledon champion, grimaced and gurned his way through a number of practice sessions at the All England Club yesterday, while his female counterpart was scratched from her semi-final at Eastbourne’s Aegon International, citing a back injury.
The likelihood remains that both will make Monday’s opening day as the host nation basks in the possibilities of having the top seed in the men’s singles and the No 6 in the women’s event.
After yesterday’s first session, Murray responded to questions about whether he would be able to play after a hip problem, saying: ‘I hope so, that’s the plan.’ After the second, he commented: ‘The session was good. I’m OK.’
After two days of rest and treatment Murray
With the big fortnight upon us, Sportsmail gave Andy Murray a task: build us your perfect tennis player, based on who you have played against in your career. if you could pick the best shots from everyone you have faced, which combination would make up your dream machine?
BEST FIRST SERVE
JOHN ISNER. he has a great service motion and it obviously helps being 6ft10in. he can hit angles on the court that other guys can’t due to his height but it’s technically a beautiful motion and he can repeat it for three or four hours at huge speed. the difference between him and IVO KARLOVIC is that isner can use the spins more, so he can get the ball to kick up more and can put greater slice on his serve. Karlovic has a flatter delivery.
BEST SECOND SERVE
it would probably be ISNER again but ROGER FEDERER has a very good second serve, very accurate, good under pressure. he can hit all his spots. Quite a few players are predictable but he moves his second serve around very well. if i’m playing Roger i can move closer to the baseline to receive but if i’m playing isner sometimes he’s sending down 125mph second serves at my body.
BEST RETURN OF SERVE
A lot of guys on the tour are great returners, but NOVAK
DJOKOVIC and ROGER are two of the best. their ability to read the direction is as good as it gets.
DAVID FERRER probably has the most under-rated return of serve. i never played ANDRE AGASSI but loved watching him return, he was probably one of the best ever. he had the ability to not only return the biggest serves in the game, but to return those serves as aggressively as they were being hit at him.
BEST FOREHAND
it depends on the surface but this category is between ROGER and RAFAEL NADAL. on grass i would take Roger because he has the ability to hit through the court more and flatten it out. on slower surfaces like clay it’s Rafa. he creates more of an angle as well, when it’s slower you have more time to create the spin and angle but when it’s quicker it doesn’t have the same effect. it’s a toss up between the two.
BEST BACKHAND
oveRAll, in recent years, it would be DJOKOVIC. People talk about his down-the-line shot but he also changes the direction of the stroke very well. At his best it’s a very consistent shot and technically very good — he can go cross court or down the line effortlessly.
BEST SLICED BACKHAND
FEDERER. he hits it well both ways, cross court and down the line. his shot down the line comes with a bit of side spin, playing across the ball so it goes away from you. he can also get it to shoot through the court.
BEST ATHLETICISM
GAEL MONFILS would be the best athlete who plays tennis but, because his strokes are very long, when he is on the run he is not as dangerous as some of the other players. Some guys when they are defending are incredible at coming up with winners. Gael can chase down any ball but he is maybe not as dangerous as RAFA running onto his forehand, who can hit winners from anywhere. As a pure athlete, though, Gael is the best.
BEST VOLLEY
WITHOUT being biased this is an area where the Brits excel. My brother JAMIE has very good volleys and he would definitely be up there. I got to play against TIM HENMAN and he had a great volley. NADAL volleys well but a lot of the time he is coming in behind an amazing groundstroke, whereas tim didn’t have that powerful a groundstroke, so he was coming in as a tactic and having to play more difficult volleys. JONNY MARRAY gets an honourable mention and so does DAN EVANS.
BEST OVERHEAD SMASH
A toss-up between ROGER and RAFA here. It’s probably the shot that the pros make look easier than it is more than any other. Imagine doing a serve and trying to hit it from that height. And the wind makes a difference — tennis balls are pretty light — and sometimes you can have the sun causing an issue as well. It’s easier indoors as the ball doesn’t go up as high and there is no wind. Commentators often react when someone misses a smash as though it’s the biggest clanger of all time. But you only hit maybe three or four per match so you’re never in a groove with them.
BEST FOOTWORK
A difficult one. NADAL has got really good footwork, as has KEI NISHIKORI. MONFILS is better when he is taking longer strides to get to the ball. NOVAK has very good footwork — he excels at moving backwards and forwards and making small adjustments. When the ball comes deep, he doesn’t just stand there.
BEST DROPSHOT
DJOKOVIC. It requires a lot of touch and a clear head. Novak has a good dropshot although he tends to only play them on his backhand side. Actually, DAN EVANS has a very good dropshot, he has got great hands.