MURRAY TO TAKE TRIP TO THE SEASIDE

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 this afternoon after Murray had spent the morning having a hit at the All England Club. This signals that he has pulled up satisfactorily after his gruelling comeback match on Tuesday when he was defeated by Nick Kyrgios at Queen’s Club in a contest lasting two hours and 39 minutes. The last time Murray played at Eastbourne’s Devonshire Park was in 2009, when he made a surprise one-off appearance for the North of Scotland team. He joins a relatively strong list of players that includes the two British No 1s of either sex, 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 Wimbledon. That seems unlikely, although the 31-year-old Scot’s concern would be whether his body can withstand the rigours of five-set competition as he returns following hip surgery on January 8. The Eastbourne courts are good but the prevailing breeze off the waterfront can make conditions quite different to Wimbledon.