Murray considers Davis Cup tie in Glasgow as part of recovery plans

Andy Murray left the US Open weighing up whether to squeeze one last Davis Cup trip to Glasgow into his long-term recovery plans.

The former world number one was beaten in the second round of his comeback grand slam in New York by Fernando Verdasco on Wednesday evening.

Murray is not scheduled to return to ATP Tour action until September 24 at the Shenzhen Open, which will be followed by the China Open in Beijing and he has already said he will play relatively sparingly to avoid stressing his troublesome hip.

The Davis Cup, therefore, offers a real dilemma. Murray has not played in the competition for two years but next month’s play-off against Uzbekistan at the Emirates Arena from September 14-16 could be his final chance to play in front of his home fans in Glasgow.

The changes coming into effect next season mean the number of ties Britain will host is set to be reduced, with potentially several years between home matches.

Murray said to the BBC: “I’d have to chat to my team because this is obviously a very important period in my rehab and my longterm strategy.

“Playing five sets takes a lot out of you, which I’ve obviously learned in the last couple of days and the Davis Cup has also taken a lot out of me. But there’s a big part of me that would love to play and get the opportunity to play one last time in Glasgow.”

Murray has had some of the most memorable moments of his career in the Davis Cup and in Glasgow in particular and one option would be just to play doubles with brother Jamie.

Davis Cup captain Leon Smith told Press Association Sport: “First and foremost he’ll have to speak to his team and see how he feels. He’ll for sure want to do some physical work again.

“I’m due to speak to him again over the next two or three days. If there’s a chance he can be part of it in any capacity then it would be absolutely amazing.”

Smith, an important figure in Murray’s career for 20 years, was very encouraged by what he saw against Verdasco.

“It’s another really good step forwards for him to come here and get two really tough matches in really tough conditions,” said Smith.

“I thought there were really good moments where he was being offensive but, when he needed to move, his court coverage was really good.

“You see his energy on court and he’s clearly loving competing again. He’ll know there’s some way to go but there’s no doubt he’s making good progress.”

Murray’s biggest challenge in the long term will be to find a game style that allows him to return to the top of the game while taking into account the limitations caused by his hip.

Verdasco had played Murray 14 times previously and beaten him only once. Asked about the differences in the Scot’s game, Verdasco said: “Obviously he’s not with the same confidence when he was top four. But that’s normal.

“He made more double faults maybe than he used to. Obviously, with the serve he is not with the same confidence.

“Moving to the forehand, he has more, I think, pain or he is maybe scared of the hip.”

Nick Kyrgios advanced to the third round at the US Open yesterday with a 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 6-0 victory over Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Wimbledon women’s champion Angelique Kerber survived a lengthy tussle with Swede Johanna Larsson to win 6-2 5-7 6-4.

Fifth seed Petra Kvitova defeated Wang Yafan of China 7-5 6-3 and next faces in-form Aryna Sabalenka, who beat Vera Zvonareva 6-3 7-6 (9-7).

Andy Murray could play in the Davis Cup this year.