'I don't enjoy tennis as much' - Andy Murray admits comeback from surgery is proving challenging

ByJames Walker-Roberts

Updated 06/05/2021 at 15:18 GMT

It has been a difficult year for Andy Murray, who missed the Australian Open after testing positive for Covid-19 and then suffered another injury setback at the Miami Open. It is not yet known when he will play again, but he says he still wants to return, even though his comeback from hip surgery has been difficult.

Andy Murray has admitted he has found his comeback from surgery tougher than expected, but remains determined to continue playing tennis.

The 33-year-old has undergone two hip operations, the first in 2018 and the second in 2019, shortly after he seemingly came close to retiring at the Australian Open.

Although he has come back to the ATP Tour he has only managed to play 10 competitive matches since the start of 2020 and has dropped to No. 123 in the world.

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"Once I had the metal hip I knew it wasn’t going to be easy," Murray, who missed the Australian Open earlier this year after testing positive for Covid-19, told the Evening Standard.

"There’s just... at times, I didn’t expect it to be quite like this."

Murray hasn’t played since the Rotterdam Open in early March after suffering another injury setback that ruled him out of the Miami Open.

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He may play at Roland-Garros next month with a wildcard or through qualifying, otherwise his focus will be on the grass season and returning to Wimbledon for the first time since 2017.

"It’s either do it or stop playing, and I still want to keep playing," he added. "I just don’t enjoy it as much as maybe I did a few years ago."

While the last few years have been tough for Murray, he says there have been positives, such as spending more time with his family.

"I got to see my kids growing up in the last couple of years and I’ve spent loads of time around them and got to build great relationships with them, which I wouldn’t have had the chance to do otherwise… In some ways, that’s been really the positive thing that’s come out of this."

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As well as his achievements on the court during his career, Murray has been praised for consistently speaking out for women's equality.

He says that being coached by former world No 1 Amelie Mauresmo from 2014-16 opened his eyes even more over the issues faced by women.

"When I started working with a female coach, that was when I realised there was a problem and I was like, ‘Wow’, you know she’s been number one in the world? You cannot be more successful than that. I felt she was being unfairly judged in the media and purely because she was a woman.

"I just want everyone, so men and women, to be treated the same. I don’t think that’s radical, I just think it should be a human right."

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