Murray hits Nature trail as he steps up SW19 preparation
ANDY MURRAY will step up his pre-Wimbledon preparations next week with a trip to the seaside to play the Nature Valley International event at Eastbourne. The two-time Wimbledon champion will make a first ever appearance at a tournament best known for its historically strong women’s field, but which now has an ATP 250-level draw running in parallel. The decision was announced after Murray spent the morning having a hit at the All England Club. This signals he has pulled up satisfactorily after his gruelling comeback defeat to Nick Kyrgios at Queen’s Club. The last time Murray played at Eastbourne’s Devonshire Park was in 2009, when he guested for the North of Scotland team. He joins the two British No 1s, Kyle Edmund and Jo Konta, plus Stan Wawrinka. Novak Djokovic won the title 12 months ago but has not returned. When he lost at the Fever-Tree Championships against Kyrgios, Murray hinted it was possible he could play Eastbourne without going on to play at SW19. That seems unlikely, although the Scot’s concern would be whether his body can withstand five-set competition as he returns following hip surgery. The Eastbourne courts are good but the breeze off the waterfront can make conditions quite different to Wimbledon. Meanwhile, Murray’s protege Aidan McHugh has been backed to make an instant impact on the seniors — after being handed a wild card for Wimbledon qualifying. The 17-year-old, whose main focus will remain the Junior Wimbledon tournament, and 20-year-old compatriot Maia Lumsden have both been given a chance to play their way into the main draws at SW19. And Tennis Scotland national coach Colin Fleming says McHugh shouldn’t be written off as a no-hoper ahead of his first qualifier on Monday. ‘It’s a big step up for Aidan,’ admitted Fleming. ‘But he’s got a good game for playing on grass. He’s also got the juniors at Roehampton and the juniors at Wimbledon. ‘So it’s a great opportunity, a great experience, rather than going there and feeling he has to do something. At the same time, I’m not going to rule him out and say he can’t win matches. ‘Because he can. I’ve hit with him quite a bit, he has great skills and good assets. ‘If he pulls it together on the grass, he will be a tough player. ‘Physically, he is ready to do it. In terms of his game, the big thing is about learning how to apply the skills he has.’ Dan Evans will join McHugh in qualifying next week after wins over Marcus Willis and Jack Findel-Hawkins in pre-qualifying. The 28-year-old requires three further wins at Roehampton from Monday to earn his place at the All England Club and — despite labouring against Findel-Hawkins — he also demonstrated the ability that took him into the world’s top 50 prior to him serving a year-long ban.