Unfit Andy Murray pulls out of Wimbledon

Britain's Andy Murray

Andy Murray has withdrawn from Wimbledon on the eve of the tournament after the two-time champion decided he wasn't fit enough to compete at the All England Club.

The two-time champion had been due to play Benoit Paire in the first round tomorrow and spoke positively about his prospects at a press conference on Saturday, but he has decided best-of-five-set tennis is too demanding at this stage of his comeback from hip surgery.

Murray said in a statement: "It's with regret I'm withdrawing from Wimbledon. I've made significant progress in practice and matches over the last 10 days but, after lengthy discussions with my team and with a heavy heart, we've decided that playing best-of-five-set matches might be a bit too soon in the recovery process.

"We did everything we could to try to be ready in time. I will start practising on the hard courts and continuing with my rehab and recovery and I'm looking forward to the US hard-court season.

"Thanks for all the messages of support and I'm excited to finally be back playing after so long out." Murray has only just returned to action after 11 months on the sidelines due to a hip injury.

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