ANDY Murray is more convinced than ever that withdrawing from Wimbledon was one of the best decisions he has ever made.
On an appearance as a pundit on BBC’s coverage from SW19 yesterday, the 31-year-old said that while he was “really close” to playing, he was already feeling the benefit of practising on a hard court instead. He was already looking forward to competing at the ATP Tour event in Washington in three weeks’ time.
“I think it was the best decision not to play at Wimbledon,” he said. “Last time I came in when the hip was bad, made the quarter-finals and missed a year. I didn’t want to go in, play four, five matches and do more damage.
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“I was really close,” he said. “I was here on the Saturday, practising and playing sets, desperate to play. That is why I think it was such a great decision not to. When I thought about it long and hard, I was very unlikely to win the event. The smart thing was not to play.
“I was back on Monday playing on the hard courts and as soon as I got on the hard courts I felt better. Hopefully that will help my movement and free up my hip a little bit. My plan is still to play in Washington which starts three weeks yesterday, but I am going to be here the next few weeks, practising on the hard courts.”
Murray said he thought Novak Djokovic could threaten pre-tournament favourites Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer. “I think he can beat both of them, whether it happens or not I’m not sure.”
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