Murray is scheduled to play his opening match on Tuesday but still faces a race against time to be fit for what is expected to be his final Wimbledon
Andy Murray will play Tomas Machac in the first round of Wimbledon, should the two-time champion be fit enough to take part in what is expected to be his final tournament at SW19. Murray took his place in the singles draw despite admitting he may not be ready to compete after undergoing an operation on his spine, and there may be updates on his condition at the tournament’s media day this afternoon.
Emma Raducanu will play 22nd seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the first round as the former US Open champion returns to SW19 after missing last year due to injury. Katie Boulter, seeded for the first time, opens against Tatjana Maria and could play Harriet Dart in round two. Likewise, British No 1 Jack Draper opens against qualifier Elias Ymer and would face fellow Brit Cameron Norrie in round two if both men win their opening match.
The build-up to Wimbledon continues as women’s No 1 Iga Swiatek and men’s No 1 Jannik Sinner discuss their chances, with Marketa Vondrousova and Carlos Alcaraz the defending champions of the singles titles. Novak Djokovic is seeded second as the 37-year-old attempts to win Wimbledon for a record eighth time following a five-set defeat to Alcaraz in a thrilling men’s final last year.
Follow all the latest build-up to Wimbledon in today’s live blo
After leaving the practice courts, Andy Murray was stopped by John McEnroe and Nick Kyrgios as they filmed their podcast. Before then, Murray was able to have a laugh and a joke with his team as they finished their session. You get the sense that they are going to miss these moments.
Raducanu on Murray’s chances of finishing up at Wimbledon
Emma Raducanu gave a good answer about Andy Murray earlier and described him as her “hero” as he aims to recover in time for Wimbledon.
“I think for a tournament like Wimbledon you’ll push your body, you’ll push your recovery to the maximum. You’ll take the consequences that will come after or during, whatever you have to do. I think you will just absolutely push yourself to the maximum, and push the people around you to also be at their best.
“I’m very happy to see him here because when I think of Wimbledon, I think of Andy. Growing up, that was the generation, the hero I would look up to. I think it just feels right and I really hope that, yeah, Tuesday or whenever he’s playing that he’s on the match court.”
Murray not giving up on Wimbledon chances
Murray’s movement was understandably pretty heavy as he returned to the practice courts, but the 37-year-old is clearly determined to give himself every chance of appearing at Wimbledon this week. After this he’ll have two more days to decide if he is ready for singles action against Tomas Machac on Tuesday.
He is due to speak tomorrow.
Andy Murray arrives at Wimbledon practice courts
A hugely positive sight: Andy Murray is hitting ground strokes and serves on the practice courts at SW19 right now. He has three days to get his body ready for his first-round singles match, after undergoing back surgery last weekend, and there are signs of hope here as he loosens up at Wimbledon this afternoon.
