MURRAY GAMBLE

Andy skips warm-up

ANDY MURRAY appears to be heading to the Australian Open with just two matches under his belt since September, rather than playing a warm-up event in Sydney.

The Scot lost in the second round of the Brisbane International, which was the first tournament of his comeback from ongoing hip problems.

However, rather thanhan taktaking a wildcard intoo the Sydney International, nal, Murray has opted to o fly straight to Melbourne - to prepare for the first Grand Slam of the year.

A photo uploaded to his social media accounts yesterday y showed his boarding g pass for an economy my ticket from Brisbanene to Melbourne.

On his comeback from a lengthy spell of rehabilitation, the Scot won his first match this week in straight sets against Australian James Duckworth before losing in the second round to world No 16 Daniil Medvedev. Yet the interviews he has given before and after the matches have perhaps haperhaps indicated more ththan the results. The 31- year- old admitted he is still suffering from pain in his hip and is unsure how much lolonger he will be able to keepk playing. He said he suffers pain even wwhen walking and can findfid thatt worse than some of the movement in matches. British No 1 Kyle Edmund is not fully fit either, having pulled out of the Sydney International with a knee injury. The 23-yearold world No 14 has promised to do ‘everything he can’ to recover in time for the Australian Open, which starts on January 14, and his representatives have said his injury is ‘nothing too serious’.

Edmund made the semi-finals in Melbourne last year but his season has not started well. He lost his opening match in Brisbane to Japanese qualifier Yasutaka Uchiyama, ranked 171 places below him.

Maria Sharapova is another big-name doubt for the Australian Open after she retired with a thigh injury in the Shenzhen Open yesterday.

Meanwhile, Jo Konta has signed a new kit deal with Italian clothing company Ellesse for the 2019 season.