Wimbledon singles dream over for Andy Murray – but he could still play doubles

Andy Murray’s dream of one final singles appearance at Wimbledon ended on Tuesday but disappointment over his late withdrawal was offset by the prospect of a doubles swansong alongside brother Jamie.

Murray released a statement confirming that he was not fit enough to take to Centre Court for his scheduled meeting with Tomas Machac, the Czech No 1. He also said that he would not be returning to Wimbledon next year.

Later, after practising at the Aorangi Park training complex that stands next to the All England Club, Murray told reporters: “It [his right leg] just wasn’t where I wanted it to be unfortunately [but] doubles is a slightly different game in terms of physicality.”

Then Murray spoke about the positives of the situation. “Getting the opportunity to play with Jamie here will be special – we’ve never done that before. And yeah, I’ll make the most of it. It’s easier said than done to just enjoy it when you’re out there because you’re competing, concentrating and trying to win the match. But yeah, hopefully we can have a good run.”

“I’m disappointed. I wanted to play in the [singles] tournament and I wanted to walk out on my own on Centre Court again and give it another go,” Murray added.

“I also was only going to give it a go if I felt like I could be competitive and I didn’t feel like that today. I’m sorry for everyone who came and wanted to support. I wanted that moment as well, as much for me as for the people that have supported me over the years. The fans but also my closest friends, family, my team. It was one of those things. Unfortunate. The timing was horrible, the surgery was a complex one and it wasn’t to be.”

Asked about the doubles, which probably will take place on Thursday afternoon, Murray added: “It’s brilliant that we get the opportunity to play. It was not something that either of us had planned.

“Jamie’s usual partner [Michael Venus], because of Jamie’s commitments at Queen’s [where the elder Murray is the tournament director], he decided to go a different route over the grass season. And when he [Jamie] asked me I was like, ‘Yeah, I would like to give that a go.’ And based on everything that has happened, this is going to be it and looking forward to it.

“It’s not like we’re going to roll over and lose the match. We’ve got a good chance of winning. Me and Jamie play great doubles together and if both of us are fit and well on the court we can definitely win the match.”

Murray had been limited to just two sets of singles tennis in his build-up for Wimbledon after undergoing surgery on a spinal cyst 10 days ago.

He was able to compete with Kyle Edmund, the former Australian Open semi-finalist who is now ranked at No 479 in the world, and up-and-coming Briton Jack Pinnington Jones.

But Machac is a talented and eye-catching player who came through qualifying to reach the main draw of last year’s Wimbledon, before kicking on substantially in the last 12 months.

Now ranked 39th in the world, he would probably have exposed Murray’s recent lack of practice and conditioning, not to mention the ongoing issue with a recovering nerve in Murray’s right leg.

As Murray explained in his pre-tournament press conference, the nerve hasn’t yet recovered from being squashed by the cyst in his spine, so his leg has a numb feeling “like if you sleep on your arm funny [and then] you wake up and you’ve got a dead arm.”

Speaking on Tuesday, Murray admitted that this situation may never resolve itself. “Most days it’s been getting better,” he said, “but I still don’t have the total feeling and normality back in my leg yet. I hope that continues every single day to get better but there’s no guarantee on that. These sorts of injuries, people don’t always get the full function back.”

When performing sprints at Aorangi Park on Sunday, Murray was clearly unbalanced, with one leg working far better than the other. As a result, he was unable to keep up with his coach – the former doubles player Jonny O’Mara – when they raced each other over short distances. This was a long way from the man who, according to his former fitness trainer Jez Green, used to be quicker than Usain Bolt over the first few steps.

During his practice set with Edmund on Monday, Murray served and returned solidly, but it was his movement from side to side that was lacking. He was slow into the corners, and even slower out of them. Machac would probably have exposed this problem and won a one-sided match, which was the scenario Murray expressly wanted to avoid. As he said on Sunday, “I don’t want to go on the court and it be awkward or not be able to be competitive.”

Doubles should hide that lateral-movement issue, as Murray only needs to cover half of the court, but there could still be a problem with running back. Ideally, the Murrays would play with Jamie – the volley specialist – at the net, and Andy mopping up behind him. But if they both want to come forward and shorten the points, there will be a lot of space open for lobs.

Murray has not played doubles with Jamie before at Wimbledon. “I think [it’s important] for him to get the send-off he deserves,” said Jamie when asked about the prospect at the weekend.

Asked about the upcoming Olympic Games on Tuesday, Murray was categorical. “I plan on playing the Olympics, yeah. That will be my last tournament.” He is expected to partner Dan Evans in the men’s doubles, assuming that both are free from their recent injury issues.

And could Murray also play singles? “I’ll see how I feel, I still don’t know exactly how this is going to recover.”