Andy Murray is determined to push through his persistent back issues to complete what could be his Wimbledon swansong. The British tennis legend, 37, has been suffering with injuries for much of his 30s and hasn’t reached beyond the third round of a major since 2017.
After having surgery on a spinal cyst over the weekend, Murray’s chances of making it to SW19 have been significantly dented, though the three-time Grand Slam champion is going to try to play at least some part in the championships, even if he has to settle for doubles with his brother Jamie.
Murray’s team released a statement on Monday saying the Scot was “recovering well from his surgery and has started training again”, but admitted that it was too early to confirm whether he’d actually be fit to play. On Thursday, he said a decision would be made “as late as possible”, and added that it’s “more likely” that he won’t be able to play singles.
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Even if the two-time Wimbledon champion is cleared, he’ll be facing a major uphill battle given his recurring back problems. Golf legend Tiger Woods has seen the second half of his career hampered by similar issues, and has demonstrated just how hard it is to overcome persistent back injuries.
Since 2013, Woods, 48, has suffered nine separate issues, prompting four different surgeries. His problems began during the 2013 St Jude Championship where he suffered a series of back spasms that left him hunched on all fours during the final round.
The problem resurfaced during the 2014 Honda Classic, forcing Woods to withdraw. It turned out he had a pinched nerve in his back, and he had to get surgery to fix the problem, causing him to miss the Masters for the very first time in his career.
Tiger Woods has been plagued with back problems for years (Image: Getty)
He returned in August 2014, but suffered another back injury just a few weeks later. Taking time off didn’t help much either. Despite playing almost no golf between August and the following February, Woods once again injured his back during a horror performance at the 2015 Farmers Insurance Open.
The American underwent microdiscectomy surgery in an attempt to fix the issue, before returning to action in 2016. However, just six weeks after his returning, he was forced to undergo a follow-up procedure to relieve discomfort in his back.
In 2017, his back spasms returned, prompting yet another surgery, this time to treat a disc problem in his lower back. Issues in Woods’ personal life slowed his rehabilitation, but after four separate back surgeries the persistent problems he’d been hampered with for years had been reduced to occasional niggles.
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In 2019, he famously claimed an historic 15th major title by winning the Masters, in what pundits rated as one of the greatest sporting comebacks in history. No doubt Murray will be hoping for a similar sort of response to his recent surgery.
But that’ll be an unbelievably tall order given his form and fitness over the past six-and-a-half years. The Glasgow-born star overcame a recurring hip problem a few years back.
But issues with his back, as well as problems with his ankles, legs, groin and abdominal muscles have plagued him over the past few months. The race is now on to see if he’ll be fit for one last hurrah in south-west London.
