Andy Murray
Andy Murray looks set to return to action earlier than anticipated as he is planning to compete at the 2024 French Open, according to a report.
The British great has not played since suffering a “full rupture” of his ATFL and a “near full thickness rupture” of his CFL in his ankle at the Miami Open in March.
The former world No 1 sustained the injury near the end of his gruelling three-set third round loss to Tomas Machac at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. Remarkably, Murray managed to continue and performed at a solid level to come within two points of victory in the third set tiebreak.
Following the cruel blow in his final appearance at the Miami Open, Murray wrote on Instagram: “Goes without saying this is a tough one to take and I’ll be out for an extended period. But I’ll be back with 1 hip and no ankle ligaments when the time is right.”
Andy Murray withdrew from scheduled clay-court appearances in Monte Carlo and Munich last month, and given the severity of the issue, it was feared he could be set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
However, encouraging footage of the three-time Grand Slam champion practising on clay emerged last week — raising hopes he could make his return on the surface.
Things we LOVE to see 🤩@andy_murray back hitting on the clay! 💥
🎥 @Jonny_OMara on Instagram pic.twitter.com/37neTSCM7Z
— LTA (@the_LTA) April 28, 2024
It has now materialised that Andy Murray is set to feature at the French Open, with i News claiming the 36-year-old will team up with fellow Brit Dan Evans in the Roland Garros men’s doubles event.
The 2024 French Open will be played from May 26 to June 9 and it would be Murray’s first appearance at the clay-court Grand Slam since 2020.
The decision to play doubles with Evans could be to help Murray prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics — with the tennis event to be staged at Stade Roland Garros between July 27 and August 4.
It seems unlikely that Murray will compete in singles at the French Open given his lack of clay-court matches and the event’s proximity to the grass-court season, which is a huge priority for him. Murray revealed earlier this year he was “likely not going to play past the summer.”
In February, Murray outlined his hope to play the French Open again before he retires and suggested it could play a significant role ahead of the Olympics at the same venue.
“Last few years I’ve tried to give myself maybe better preparation for the grass season, but that also doesn’t guarantee that you’re going to play really well on the grass,” Murray explained.
“I’ve had experiences through my career where I didn’t play the French Open in 2013 and I won Wimbledon. I also played the French Open and did really well in 2016.
“I don’t think it makes a huge difference if you get an extra week’s practice or so on the grass. So yeah, I would like to play one more time. I like the tournament. I like playing at Roland Garros.
“I mean, obviously, yeah, if you want to do well at the Olympics, you probably are going to have to play some tournaments and get matches in on the clay. Yeah, even if the Olympics was not after Wimbledon, I would still want to play it (the French Open).”
