ANDY’S IN NO HURRY

Tennis legend says star can shake off his nagging hip issue

A FORMER Grand Slam champion says Andy Murray can return to the top of the sport despite suffering another setback forcing him to pull out of the Australian Open this week.

Mats Wilander said the former world No. 1 - who has not played a competitive match since losing a Wimbledon quarterfinal in July last year - can overcome his troublesome hip issues which may yet require surgery. THE much-needed return of star big man Nate Jawai wasn’t enough to inspire the Cairns Taipans to a road win across the ditch against New Zealand yesterday afternoon.

The 82-69 defeat to the Breakers leaves Cairns’ finals dreams hanging by a thread as the club will face must-win games for the rest of the NBL season if they want to force their way into the top four.

After grabbing a win over Brisbane at home on Friday night, the Taipans were plagued by poor defensive lapses in the first half that handed the hosts easy buckets throughout the contest. The finals equation is pretty simple for the Snakes from here: win every game and hope a few teams in the top four start to stutter.

In his second game of the season, Jawai (pictured) looked lively as he dropped five points and grabbed two rebounds in limited time on court.

“I think the start really hurt us,” Taipans skipper Cameron Gliddon said. “It really let us down. FULL STORY PAGE 24

“Of course he can (come back),” the Swede said. “Have the surgery and see how things go. He’s a hard enough worker and so talented that I don’t think it’s a problem for him to come back as long as his mind wants him to come back.”

Murray has battled back from injury before, most notably when he took time off for lower back surgery in 2013.

PRIZED GELDING FINDS FORM IN NORTH QUEENSLAND