Andy Murray ‘Extremely Disappointed’ After Withdrawing from Wimbledon as ‘End’ of His Career Looms

Murray, 37, will instead play in the doubles tournament alongside his older brother Jamie

Andy Murray will forgo singles competition at this week’s Wimbledon tennis tournament and instead play one final time alongside his brother Jamie in the doubles tournament.

Murray, 37, withdrew from the men's singles tournament on Tuesday hours before he was slated to play in the opening round. The decision comes after weeks of Murray openly discussing the difficult decision of whether to play at Wimbledon, which he said would be his last Grand Slam tournament.

The three-time Grand Slam champion has struggled in recent years amid health problems, including having a cyst removed from his spine a week ago that put his participation in this week’s Wimbledon in limbo.

“As you can imagine, he is extremely disappointed,” Murray’s representatives told the Associated Press about his decision to not play in the singles tournament. His management company said Murray “looks forward to competing at Wimbledon for the last time” alongside his older brother instead.

Murray, who won Wimbledon in 2013 and 2016, said he plans to retire after the Paris Olympics, which begin later this month. At a tournament at Queen’s Club last month, Murray forfeited after his right leg began to go numb, which doctors later found out to be from the cyst on his spin compressing a nerve in his back.

Related: Andy Murray Hints at Possible Retirement from Tennis: ‘I Probably Don’t Have Too Long Left’

Despite the diagnosis and his surgery last week, Murray told reporters over the weekend that he was determined to compete.

“I’m hoping that, with each day that passes, the likelihood of me being able to play will increase. I mean, it’s impossible for me to say, because I also want to go out there and be able to play to a level that I’m happy with,” he said, according to the AP. “I don’t want to be in a situation like at Queen’s. I don’t want to go on the court and [have it] be awkward or not be able to at least be competitive.”

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Murray is still set to compete at his fifth Olympics in Paris later this month after being named to Great Britain’s tennis team. He is slated to play both singles and doubles if he's healthy.

Murray first burst onto the tennis scene as a 17-year-old phenom in 2005, winning his first ATP title less than a year after turning pro.

Related: Surprise! Tennis Star Andy Murray and Wife Kim Welcome Their Fourth Baby

By 2008, Murray ascended to the top of the sport and reached his first Grand Slam title during the U.S. Open, though he lost in straight sets to Roger Federer. In 2012, Murray captured his long-coveted Grand Slam championship with a win at the same tournament over Novak Djokovic. He went on to win Wimbledon twice over the next four years, as well as becoming a back-to-back gold medalist at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.

Murray was ranked the world’s No. 1 tennis player in 2016, becoming the first British player to ever do so. And at the end of that year, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

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But in 2018, injuries and back-to-back hip surgeries put Murray’s career on halt for nearly two years.

“I’ve been in a lot of pain for probably about 20 months,” Murray said at an emotional press conference at the 2019 Australian Open, per Australia's news.com.au. He added, “I can’t even put my shoes or socks on without any pain.”

Earlier this year, Murray opened up about facing the end of his career following a match at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

“I obviously still love competing and still love the game, but it obviously gets harder and harder the older you get to compete with the young guys and keep your body fit and fresh,” he said, adding, “I probably don’t have too long left, but I’ll do as best as I can these last few months.”

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