Murray may have to miss Davis Cup tie

TENNIS: Scots ace surprised Serbian tie will be on clay

Andy Murray has admitted for the first time he may reconsider his involvement in Great Britain’s defence of the Davis Cup after it was announced the quarterfinal in Serbia will take place on clay.

Last year the 28-year-old led Great Britain to their first Davis Cup success in 79 years with victory over Belgium, but their hopes of retaining the title could now come under threat.

Murray’s summer schedule looks packed with the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open joined on the calendar this year by the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, and both he and Serbia’s main man could withdraw from the tie in Belgrade scheduled for July 15 to 17.

Murray will have already converted to the grass-court season with Queen’s and Wimbledon high on his agenda, while the Olympics and the US Open take place on hard courts, meaning he could play three consecutive competitions on three different surfaces.

Asked if the decision to play their Davis Cup tie on clay could potentially alter his commitment, Murray replied: “Potentially. I need to see how my body is first.

“I leave now to go away next week to Madrid. It’s pretty much full on through until the Olympics for the next few months.

“(It is) a number of surface changes in a very short space of time, so you never know how the body is going to react or how it’s going to pull up after those changes.

“I’ll just have to see how my body is. Hopefully I’ll be fine, but it’s going to be a tough few months and I think all the players are aware of that right now. The more surface changes that are put in there makes it that bit more tricky.”

Murray said he was surprised by the choice of a clay-court in Serbia.

“It’s tough. It just makes things more difficult at that period of the year,” he said.

“I thought that maybe they would put it on a hard court potentially. Obviously clay for us would be our weakest surface. It’s going to be tough. I would say I was slightly surprised by it.

“But every single away tie I have played over the last few years has been on clay,” he added.

“It’s more about making our team uncomfortable. It’s the surface I’ve had my worst results on, Dan Evans, my brother as well. That’s the reason for them putting it on clay.

“It’s completely understandable, but it’s tricky for Novak Djokovic changing surfaces at that time, too.

“I don’t know what the likelihood of him playing is.”

Picture: Getty. Andy Murray may reconsider his involvement in Great Britain’s defence of the Davis Cup after it was announced the quarter-final in Serbia will take place on clay.