Andy Murray pulls out of planned comeback at Libema Open as hip injury struggles take their toll

Andy Murray has pulled out of next week’s Libema Open at ’s-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands, where he had been hoping to make his long-awaited return to competition following hip surgery.

Although the former world No 1 insists that he is “getting closer to playing again” and is still hoping to come back “during the grass-court season”, his withdrawal from next week’s event confirms that his recovery has not been going as well as he had hoped. He took a break from training not long ago and has been back on court only in recent days.

“It is with regret that I won’t be ready to play in ’s-Hertogenbosch,” Murray said in a statement released by the tournament on Tuesday night. “I was excited to play there for the first time, but I am not quite ready to return. I am still aiming to play in the coming weeks, but I want to be 100 per cent when I do return.”

Murray is due to play in the Fever-Tree Championships at Queen’s Club the week after ’s-Hertogenbosch but will make a decision on whether to play there over the next seven or 10 days. Wimbledon starts in four weeks’ time on 2 July.

After having hip surgery in January Murray said that he did not want a repeat of his experiences at last year’s US Open and this year’s Brisbane International. He pulled out of both events before playing a match but after the draw had been made.

Although he has pulled out of ’s-Hertogenbosch four days before the draw, Murray is now back in an all too familiar position of not knowing whether he will be fit enough to play in fast-approaching tournaments.

The 31-year-old Scot was first troubled by his hip problem during last year’s French Open and subsequently limped his way through Wimbledon. He has not played competitively since, having aborted comeback attempts at both the US Open and in Australia at the start of this year. It was after pulling out of the Australian Open that he opted for surgery.

“It’s been very slow,” Murray said in video released by one of his sponsors on Tuesday. “I’ve been out for close to a year now, which is a lot longer than I think me and any of my team expected at the beginning. But I’m getting closer to playing again. I started training a few days ago and I’m hoping to make my comeback during the grass-court season.”

As for Wimbledon, which starts on 2 July, Murray said: “I’m hoping I’ll be there.”

Murray will not be seeded at any of the tournaments, including Wimbledon. Although the All England Club apply a seeding formula which gives a greater weight to recent grass-court results, the seeds must be ranked in the world’s top 32.

The 31-year-old Scot is currently ranked No 47 in the world but is likely to drop at least 100 places next week when his French Open ranking points from last year drop off.