Andy Murray PULLS OUT of final Wimbledon after failing to recover from spinal surgery.. but may still get huge farewell

ANDY MURRAY is OUT of his final Wimbledon singles.

The two-time champion was desperate to make it back on to Centre Court for a swansong farewell.

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Andy Murray is out of Wimbledon after withdrawing from the singles[/caption]

Darren Fletcher

The former world No1 was desperate to recover from spinal surgery in time[/caption]

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Murray was due to play on Centre Court this evening[/caption]

But he has been unable to recover in time following surgery last Saturday – June 22 – and withdrew from the tournament about eight hours before he was due to take to the grass.

Murray, 37, underwent a minor op to remove a cyst from his spine with the threat of gruelling competitive tennis reopening his stitches.

And unfortunately he does not feel ready to play his round-one clash with Tomas Machac, which was scheduled last on Centre Court around 6pm this evening.

But he is still due to play doubles with elder brother Jamie, which could start as late as Friday.

A spokesperson confirmed the sad news – and quashed any hopes of a dramatic comeback next year for a final goodbye as he nears his retirement.

A statement said: “Unfortunately, despite working incredibly hard on his recovery since his operation just over a week ago, Andy has taken the very difficult decision not to play the singles this year.

“As you can imagine, he is extremely disappointed but has confirmed that he will be playing in the doubles with Jamie and looks forward to competing at Wimbledon for the last time.”

Murray – who is still eligible for £30,000 of prize money from Wimbledon despite not playing – underwent the surgery after retiring hurt in difficult scenes at Queen’s on June 19.

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He could barely move on the court and quit at 4-1 down to Jordan Thompson.

However, despite the op, the Scot still held hopes of playing at his beloved All England Club, where he was victorious in 2013 and 2016.

Murray practised with fellow injury-hit Brit Kyle Edmund at Wimbledon on Monday, winning 6-3 2-0.

And he was determined to give his back as long as possible to recover before making a decision.

Murray was replaced in the draw by lucky loser David Goffin, who lost in the final round of qualifying last Thursday.

Ironically, it was against the Belgian that Murray secured Great Britain’s Davis Cup glory in 2015.

Goffin vs Machac got moved from Centre Court to Court 17 – with British No1 and No28 seed Jack Draper’s clash with Elias Ymer taking the final slot on the main show court.

Murray is still set to take to the court alongside brother Jamie in the men’s doubles event at Wimbledon.

The duo have drawn Aussie pair John Peers, Jamie’s former partner, and Rinky Hijikata in round one.

Andy and Jamie practised together on the Aorangi Park courts earlier today, shortly after the former officially withdrew.

Speaking to the media on Sunday, Murray said: “I’ve been practising for the last few days. I played a set on Sunday. It went pretty well but I still don’t have 100 per cent sort of feeling and sensation in my leg yet.

“It’s getting better every single day. I want to give it every single chance that I can to get there.

“I’ve no back pain, which is obviously really good. But the nature of the problem that I had was I had quite a large cyst, which was squashing, compressing my nerves.”

Murray became the first British man for 77 years to win the men’s singles at Wimbledon when he beat Novak Djokovic in the 2013 final – then added his second triumph three years later. 

His final singles match was a five-set defeat to Stefanos Tsitispas last year, a match that was stopped by the 11pm curfew and finished the following day.

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Murray has been back on the practise courts this morning[/caption]

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Andy is still set to play doubles with brother Jamie[/caption]

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Murray is still feeling discomfort in his back[/caption]

The All England Club have confirmed plans are ready in place to honour Murray with a send-off after confirming this is his final Championships.

But they refused to confirm if a statue was in the works – or if Murray himself has been directly involved in the preparations. 

CEO Sally Bolton said ahead of the tournament: “We’re ready. We’ve got a range of parts to our plans. They’re very adaptable. 

“We’re clear about what we want to do but it’s really important that this is Andy’s call and so we’ll be very much led by him and the decisions he makes.

“We have certainly been talking to members of Andy’s team. I think we will all share some of the same emotions as and when Andy decides to retire.”

Murray has been selected for the Team GB Olympics squad – where, if fit, he is expected to retire and bow out.

The Dunblane hero won singles gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016.

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Murray addressed the media during a press conference on Sunday[/caption]

Murray – pictured here after a previous surgery – was due to play Tomas Machac in round one

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Murray retired hurt at Queen’s on June 19[/caption]

Darren Fletcher

Murray practised on Monday with the wound patched up[/caption]