Andy Murray’s late withdrawal has left some fans frustrated (Picture: Getty)
It seemed fitting that soon after Andy Murray pulled out of the Wimbledon men’s singles, the rain came hammering down and paused the action in SW19.
The atmosphere at the Championships today is one of misery – and it’s not just because of the weather – which thankfully has now eased up to resume play.
Spectators were absolutely desperate to catch a final glimpse of one of Britain’s biggest sporting heroes, a two-time Wimbledon champion, who is highly likely to hang up his racket after the Olympic Games in Paris later this summer.
Murray, 37, was meant to be playing Tomas Machac on Centre Court but he made the painful decision to withdraw on Tuesday morning, conceding defeat to a back injury.
The news came as a hammer blow to some of the Murray superfans who have been queuing since the Gates opened up on Monday and many are now questioning why he waited so long to announce his final call on participation in the singles.
Murray is still scheduled to play in the men’s doubles alongside his brother Jamie – with their first-round match likely to take place Thursday or Friday – but that doesn’t mean much for everyone at the Championships today who wanted to see him.
‘We were hoping we would see him at some point today,’ Katrina, 42, told Metro.co.uk. She’s one of many Murray fans on a gloomy day at the All England Club. ‘I love Andy. I’m from Scotland. So he means more to me as well!’
Play was temporarily paused at Wimbledon on Tuesday due to rain (Picture: Metro)
‘It was a bit late, wasn’t it?’ Martin, 49, said of Murray’s decision to withdraw on Tuesday morning. ‘He easily could have made that decision yesterday. I think he should have made the decision last night.’
‘We had tickets for Centre Court,’ Connor, 19, added. ‘I hope [he will reverse his decision and come back to play singles in 2025]. But I don’t think it’s very likely.’
‘I’m a little bit upset,’ Ena, 75, who also had Centre Court tickets, said. ‘Yes [he should’ve announced it last night]. I hope he’ll come back. You never know.’
Tennis fans were forced to run for cover on a gloomy day in SW19 (Picture: Metro)
Speaking on Monday, Nick Kyrgios, the 2022 Wimbledon finalist who is working as a BBC pundit, urged Murray to ‘wrap it up’ and stick his feet up. It would’ve avoided a lot of disappointment around the grounds at Wimbledon today.
‘He’s arguably one of the best to ever do it, so I completely understand him trying to get out here and get in front of his fans one last time,’ Kyrgios said.
‘I don’t think I’ve played through something as severe as that. If he is feeling good enough to play some dubs (doubles) and get out there and give …read more
Source:: Metro
