Hoping His Body Holds Up, Andy Murray Is Back In Singles This Week In London

While Roger Federer continues his comeback in Halle, another all-time great Andy Murray is set to play his first singles match since March at Queen’s Club this week in London.

The 5-time tournament champions has been off the tour due to a groin issue as well as to tend to the birth of a fourth child in March. He was in Rome for doubles but his last singles match was a second round loss in Rotterdam to Andrey Rublev. This will be his fourth event at all levels (he made the Challenger final in Biella) in 2021.

Now 34, Murray, the former No. 1 says he’s ready to compete, he just needs his body and surgically-repaired hip to agree.

“I know I can still compete with the best players in the world. I have been doing it consistently in practice over these past six months and certainly, on the grass, I don’t see why not.

“The question mark is obviously whether the body holds up,” said Murray. “I can’t say with any great certainty right now if that is going to happen, as I have been feeling good at different points throughout the past nine months, practiced really well and felt good going into tournaments, and then something has happened, like in Miami. I hope I will be, because I have seen enough in practice that my tennis is fine and in a good place. But physically, I need to hold up while playing matches.”

Murray will open up against the tricky Benoit Paire. If he wins, he could face top seed Matteo Berrettini in the second round.

“The reason why I’m still playing is because I love playing tennis. I spoke to a number of my ex-coaches who were players, and I asked them about when they finished playing and what it was like at the end of their careers. Unanimously, they [all said] it was extremely difficult to stop playing and our advice would be to play as long as you can.”

Also in the field are Berrettini’s countrymen Jannik Sinner and Fabio Fogini. Denis Shapovalov is seeded second. Aslan Karatsev, Dan Evans, Reilly Opelka and former winners Marin Cilic and Feliciano Lopez are in the draw, as well.