Andy Murray has 'first post-injury hit'

The two-time Wimbledon champion spent time hitting balls against a practice wall in his home village of Oxshott, according to a Facebook post from his local club.

Oxshott-based coach Craig Allen wrote that it was Murray's "first post-injury hit" on the post after his session on Friday.

The 31-year-old former world number one, who had a metal hip socket implanted in the surgery has taken the next step in his slow recovery.

Having undergone the operation at the end of January, Murray is "feeling increasingly optimistic about his chances" of making a competitive return, according to the Telegraph's Simon Briggs.

Murray has been in contact with doubles veteran Bob Bryan, who has made a successful return to competition following his own hip operation and has made the final of the men's event in Miami along with his twin brother Mike.

The Brit's plan is still to return in time for Wimbledon this summer if his rehabilitation affords him the comeback of his dreams.

“Of course I would love to,” Murray said earlier in the month. “It is my favourite tournament to play.

"But if things were going really well and I was continuing to progress but I didn’t just feel I was quite ready, then surely it makes sense for me to wait and potentially play longer than for one tournament, rather than being, ‘OK, I need to rush back because it’s Wimbledon’.

"I have lots of tests from over the years. If I am much slower than I was, let’s say in Australia, I am not just going to go and play if I can’t move properly."