Andy Murray breaks silence on spinal surgery with Brit in race against time to be fit for Wimbledon

ANDY MURRAY says he hopes to play Wimbledon next week – his final appearance at the tournament – after rehab from spinal surgery has gone “really well”.

The Scotsman – who accepts he could suffer a relapse in his recovery at any stage – will make a final call on his singles participation by Sunday night.

RexAndy Murray is racing to be fit for Wimbledon[/caption]

SplashThe Scot has been struggling with a back injury[/caption]

This year’s draw for the Wimbledon men’s and women’s singles competitions will be made at 10am on Friday at the All England Club.

It had been feared that two-time champion Muzza, 37, would be out after having a cyst removed from his spine last Saturday.

This followed his injury withdrawal from the cinch Championships at Queen’s where he struggled to walk up and down stairs.

However, despite that emergency surgery, he was hitting balls on Wednesday and he is optimistic about his chances of competing before hanging up his racquet at the end of the summer.

Speaking for the first time since his op, Murray said: “Obviously the last week has been pretty tough. 

“There’s obviously a lot going on with me planning on finishing at the Paris Olympics.

“When I had the injury at Queen’s and then had the subsequent scans and doctor’s appointments, it was a pretty difficult situation to be in. I knew I was going to have to have the surgery. 

“I had a pretty decent-sized cyst on my spinal cord which had been seen on a scan post the French Open. It was pretty small and it grew significantly in size over the next two to three weeks. 

“At Queen’s I basically lost the strength, coordination and everything in my right leg on my way to the court – you’re likely to have other complications as well.

“I was struggling to walk properly because my nerves were getting really compressed. So I had to have the operation.

“I was also given multiple different timelines for how long that would take. The operation has gone really, really well and I’m recovering really well. I hit some balls yesterday. 

“I’m not in much pain at all but the nature of nerve injuries is that they’re quite slow to recover. 

“I don’t know exactly how long it’s going to take for the nerve to get to a stage where I’m able to compete or play, 

“Whether that’s three days or whether it’s three weeks or five weeks. It’s impossible to say. 

“I’m progressing really well but I don’t know how I’m going to wake up tomorrow and how quickly my nerve is going to recover.”

Murray, who won the title in 2013 and 2016, would love to play singles but the fallback option would be doubles with elder brother Jamie, 38, in what would be an emotional reunion.

The former world No1 continued: “Maybe it’s my ego getting in the way but I feel that I deserve the opportunity to give it until the very last moment to make that decision. 

“If I was to be playing on Monday, I may know on Sunday there’s no chance that I can play.

“It’s not going to recover overnight from where it is enough to allow me to play. 

“So a decision to play singles, I may be able to make that on Sunday or whatever. 

“It’s complicated, and it’s made more complicated because I want to play at Wimbledon one more time. 

“I want to have that opportunity to play the tournament. I know that some people might look at that and say withdrawing from a tournament late at the last minute or something isn’t the right thing to do. Even though it happens every single week on the tour. 

“I feel like I deserve the opportunity to try to play there again. And I want to have that opportunity, so I’m going to give it as long as I can to see how well I recover. 

“We’ll see how the next few days go.”