Murray undergoes hip surgery, out at least until grass-court swing

In an unsurprising move based on Andy Murray’s recent withdrawal from the Australian Open and emotional post on his social media channels, the former world No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion opted for hip surgery on Monday in Melbourne. Murray has been sidelined since Wimbledon last summer.

“I’d like to thank Dr. John O’Donnell and all of the staff for looking after me,” Murray wrote following the procedure. “Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes and support over the last few days. I’ll come back from this.”

The 30-year-old Scot hopes to return for the grass-court swing, presumably at Queen’s Club and then Wimbledon. He advanced to the quarterfinals at the All-England Club in 2017 before losing an injury-plagued five-setter against Sam Querrey. Murray played a one-set exhibition against Roberto Bautista Agut in Abu Dhabi, lost it 6-2, and then flew to Australia in hopes of playing in Brisbane and Melbourne. But he withdrew from those events shortly after touching down.

“I went in at 7:30 a.m. and I woke up from the operation about 10:30 a.m.,” the Guardian reported Murray as saying. “I’m very optimistic because, having spoken to the surgeon, he was very happy about how it went. He felt that my hip will be feeling better than it did a year ago. I was still doing fine a year ago, ranked No. 1 in the world.”

“I’m going to take my time to make sure that the rehab is done properly, and make sure that the surgery is as successful as it can be,” he said. “I’ve been quoted [many] times for how long it’s taken for players to get back from the surgery I’ve had, and up to 14 weeks is what I’ve been given.

“I want to come back when I’m fit and ready to play, not to get into a situation like in Brisbane (where he entered and then withdrew) or New York (where he pulled out after the U.S. Open draw had already been made)…. I want to know when I come back that I’m ready.”