Andy Murray has confirmed that he will not play at the Marseille Open in February
Friday 18 January 2019 10:37, UK
Andy Murray has withdrawn from next month's Marseille Open and he may now decide to undergo hip surgery.
The former world No 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion has weighing up whether to continue playing through the pain of a hip injury after a dramatic five-set exit to Roberto Bautista Agut at the Australian Open on Monday.
Murray, who is also scheduled to participate in Montpellier and Dubai in February, said after his Melbourne defeat that he would decide whether to have surgery to resurface the hip bone, using a metal implant, within a week or push on through the pain to farewell fans at Wimbledon.
Marseille tournament organisers made the false assumption in an announcement that he had already decided to undero surgery before
"It's tough but I don't have a choice, I was very keen on returning to Marseille where I won the tournament in 2008," Murray said in a statement on the Marseille Open website. "This title, one of the first of my career, remains a great memory."
Tournament director Jean-Francois Caujolle came out in support of Murray, saying: "I feel for him. It makes me sad to see such a great player, that is also a person that I like a lot, have to go through such tough times. I wish for him to be able to overcome this episode in order to come back to the courts and end his career on his own terms. He deserves it."
Murray's hip has been a long-standing problem since 2017, ending his long spell among the world's elite, and he now faces the prospect of another operation which could end his hopes of a farewell Wimbledon appearance this summer.
"The first option (surgery) makes my life a lot more comfortable and enjoyable, but potentially means I never play again and also miss Wimbledon. So that's what I need to decide," Murray said after his defeat to the Spaniard.
"(Most likely is) probably to have the operation, because if that (against Bautista Agut) was my last match ... I literally couldn't have done any more."
Murray, who left Melbourne on Wednesday, will be replaced in the Marseille main draw, which starts on February 18, by 2013 runner-up Tomas Berdych.
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