MURRAY’S FRENCH FATE RESTS ON RESULTS FROM BACK SCAN
ANDY MURRAY will today undergo a scan on his lower back that will go a long way to determining whether or not he plays in the forthcoming French Open. As Rafael Nadal narrowly survived a spirited attempt to oust him from the Italian Open by Ernests Gulbis, Murray revealed that he will be checking for any structural damage to his back before plotting his next move. The 26-year-old Scot is unlikely to make any decision about his participation at Roland Garros until early next week. He could theoretically wait until the draw is made a week today but has sponsor commitments in Paris next Wednesday, and would want to be there by then anyway. There will doubtless be input from his coach Ivan Lendl — absent from his last two events — who notably chose to skip Paris at one stage of his career to focus on winning Wimbledon. Murray’s mother, Judy, indicated that Wimbledon will be at the front of the Scot’s mind when he makes the decision whether or not to go to Paris. ‘Obviously, the goal is to be in peak condition for Wimbledon,’ she told BBC Sport. ‘The scan will let him see what the injury is and what needs to be done. ‘Often you pick up niggles as you change surfaces. Each surface brings its own problems and challenges. This back issue has been rumbling for a week or so. ‘It’s not so easy on the clay. There is a lot of twisting and turning. He needs to be cautious and I’m sure Wimbledon will be his priority.’ One man who thinks Murray will still make Paris is Greg Rusedski, who said: ‘Once he gets the results of the scan, we’ll know more but, if there’s a chance he can play, I think he’ll go for it. ‘If he wants to be world No 1, then it’s a massive tournament. ‘Of course he’s got to think about his future and if it’s something that could affect the rest of his career.’ Nadal, meanwhile, came close to undermining his status as perennial favourite for the clay court Grand Slam when he struggled past Latvian Gulbis to reach the quarter-finals in Rome with a 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory. He will face compatriot David Ferrer in the last eight today.