Andy Murray to make Queen’s doubles comeback against world’s best

Rarely can a doubles draw have attracted so much interest as the one at the Queen’s Club in London on Saturday and, when the balls of fate dropped, Andy Murray and Feliciano López were matched against the best team in the world, Juan Sebastián Cabal and Robert Farah. They more than likely will play on Wednesday.

The Colombian hotshots won in Barcelona and Rome, reached the semi-finals at Roland Garros and are leading the race to London for the ATP World Tour Finals. It will not be a quiet hit in the park for Murray who is returning to the game after four months out, recovering from his second hip surgery.

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Watching Murray and López work out at Queen’s this week was the defending Fever-Tree tournament singles champion, Marin Cilic, and he had words of encouragement and caution for the Scot. “He was hitting with Feliciano, just practising,” the Croat said. “I was watching from over two courts away.

“He was hitting incredibly cleanly and really well. I didn’t see much moving. The question is always with the movement, especially on grass, a little bit difficult. But if he’s in the tournament, he definitely must feel OK.”

Cilic, struggling with form this summer and who will have problems of his own in the first round against the fast-rising Chilean Cristian Garín, added: “I was talking a little bit with him at the Australian Open [where Murray last played, losing in the first round in five tough sets against Roberto Bautista Agut] and wishing him all the best for his recovery, hoping to see him back as quickly as possible.

“He’s been an incredible figure for our sport for so many years, especially here in England. It’s incredible to see him back. I’m just hoping his recovery is going to go even better and better and that he’s going to be feeling really well. Hopefully, he will also continue to play at a high level.”

Hope is in the air, then. What Murray will not know until he gets into the contest is how his rebuilt body will react to the unscripted pressure of match conditions on a surface that can be hazardous if damp. The forecast is good for the first few days of the week, so the surface should have calmed down by midweek.

Juan Martín del Potro, who plays the young Canadian Denis Shapovalov in the first round, says Murray “has nothing to lose”. The Argentinian, who knows more about injuries than your local A&E department, said: “If he plays a tennis match without pain, it will be even bigger than winning a tournament.”

After Queen’s, Murray wants to further explore the state of his recovery by playing in Eastbourne before contemplating a return to Wimbledon, although it is uncertain if López will be able to accompany him, given he is unsure if he has to qualify for the singles there. The All England Club could cooperate by giving the Spaniard a wildcard, even though Murray says he will happily play with any of a few non-specialists he has spoken to about doubles.

If the chosen player were to be Nick Kyrgios, they would pack any court on which they appeared, perhaps for not all the right reasons. The Australian refused this week to row back on recent attacks on “cringeworthy” Novak Djokovic and “super-salty” Rafael Nadal. “A couple of people have loved it actually,” he said at the Surbiton tournament. “I’m not going to mention names but, regardless if people like it or don’t like it, they were just my honest thoughts.”

Kyrgios, whose motivation dips and soars like a hawk, plays France’s Adrian Mannarino in the first round, in the same quarter as the first seed, Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has drawn the British No 1, Kyle Edmund. Dan Evans, who has been in sparkling form, will need to be at his best in his opening match against Stan Wawrinka.