Andy Murray to undergo back surgery as injury threatens Wimbledon farewell

Andy Murray will have back surgery on Saturday in an attempt to address the injury he suffered at Queen’s and be available for a final appearance at Wimbledon.

On Thursday, Murray was forced to retire from his second-round match at Queen’s against Jordan Thompson after struggling from significant back pain during the match. Murray has since had tests and been seen by back consultants as he tries to find a way to compete at Wimbledon, which begins on 1 July.

A statement from Murray’s management on Friday read: “Andy is having a procedure on his back tomorrow. We will know more after this has taken place and will update further as soon as possible.”

Despite his participation at Wimbledon hanging in the balance, on Thursday Murray was near the All England Club to watch Charlie Robertson, a 17-year-old Scot, competing at the LTA Wimbledon wildcard playoffs.

Since the start of the season, as he struggled to string together wins, Murray has repeatedly said he was unlikely to play past the summer and either Wimbledon or the Paris Olympics have seemed the likely venues for his retirement.

In addition to his poor form, it has become increasingly clear his body is struggling to handle the demands of professional tennis.

At the beginning of this week, Murray was named in Great Britain’s Olympic team in singles and in doubles alongside Dan Evans, although the pair must wait to see if they make the rankings cut. Along with Murray’s back issues, Evans also retired from Queen’s after slipping during his first-round match, meaning a potential goodbye in Paris is also in doubt.

Murray has suffered from back pain for much of the past decade since undergoing back surgery in 2013, but on Wednesday the 37-year-old said the pain he began to feel as he walked on to the court for his match was unlike anything he had felt before. Murray said he had shooting pains down the right side of his back and leg along with a loss of coordination, something he had never previously experienced.

“I have dealt with back issues for a long time, for the last 10 years or so, and it’s probably quite common for a lot of players. But I have never had that loss of coordination, loss of control, strength in the leg before,” Murray said.

During the clay court season, Murray also said he has had a “procedure” before most clay court seasons due to the problems that the surface caused his back. After his discomfort throughout the clay season, he had it again before the grass court season. Murray floated the possibility of doing a similar procedure but on the right side of his back after his retirement at Queen’s on Wednesday,

At Queen’s, Jack Draper’s impressive breakout run came to an end as he was outplayed and outlasted 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 by Tommy Paul, the fifth seed, in the quarter-finals.

Draper entered the match on a seven-match winning streak after his maiden ATP title win at the Stuttgart Open last week and on Thursday he played an incredible match to pull off the biggest win of his young career, defeating the reigning Wimbledon and Roland Garros champion Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 6-3.

But following up a massive win and trying to keep the same mentality proved extremely challenging. Paul played the bolder attacking tennis in the decisive moments, his excellent movement frustrating Draper as he edged out a win to reach the semi-finals.

Despite the defeat, Draper leaves Queen’s having taken another step forward. He will probably finish the week as a top-30 player for the first time in his career and head to Wimbledon seeded and in form as he tries to make his first deep run at a grand slam tournament.