Wimbledon 2018: Andy Murray 'pumped' for the Championships but still unsure over fitness

Murray has played only three matches since beginning his comeback last week following 11 months out with a hip injury

Andy Murray is still not 100 per cent certain that he will be fit enough to play at Wimbledon next week but the former world No 1 admitted here on Saturday that he was “pumped” at the prospect of playing again at the tournament where he was twice been champion.

“Wimbledon for me is obviously special for a lot of reasons,” Murray said. “I always want to be here competing.

“It feels a little bit odd coming into the tournament this year. Normally at this stage I feel really nervous, lots of pressure, and I expect a lot of myself around this time of year. I’ve always loved that and enjoyed that in a way. It has been difficult but I’ve enjoyed it. Whereas this year it feels very, very different.”

Murray has played only three matches since beginning his comeback last week following 11 months out with a hip injury. “Four or five weeks ago, I didn’t know whether I’d be capable of competing at a level I’d be happy with,” he said.

“I think the last couple of weeks has been beneficial. I don’t think I played amazingly in the matches, but I think I’ve done well, considering the level of the guys that I’ve played against.”

The Scot said that he expected to start next week – he is due to play his first match against France’s Benoit Paire on Tuesday – unless he suffers any adverse reaction in the next couple of days.

“I have to view it very much day by day, just as a process,” he said. “I’m practising at a high level, a high intensity every day with some of the best players in the world. That’s really positive for me as part of getting better, to compete again.

“In other sports when you come back, you don’t tend to come back and be competing against the best in the world immediately, for five sets or three sets, whatever. You would build up a little bit, play 15 minutes, 30 minutes, and so on.

“I’m just trying right now to keep building, practising with these guys, then hopefully pulling up each day and obviously competing in the matches, which went well I think the last couple of weeks, at Queen’s and at Eastbourne.”

He added: “There are certain things that are still tricky and things I’m still trying to work through. These things are significantly better than what they were a few months ago. That’s for sure, but it just takes time.

Murray in practice ahead of the Wimbledon (Getty Images)

“Sometimes in practice you might feel really good and then you get on the match court and you’re pushing yourself a few per cent harder and you notice other things that you’re maybe struggling with as well. You learn a lot from competing.

“I’m very aware of how I’m feeling each day, very aware of how my hip is. I chat to my team lots about it. I’m spending lots of time working with my physios and stuff, trying to get stronger.

“Right now I need to be very mindful of how I’m feeling on a day-to-day basis. I have to take it that way. Right now you can’t say with 100 per cent certainty when you only started competing 10 days ago how you’re going to feel after every match and each day.

“I need to be very open with my team about that and let them know exactly how I’m feeling. Maybe in the past sometimes things are a bit sore and you just kind of get on with it, whereas now I need to be smart with that.”

Asked if he thought he would be capable of making the second week here, Murray said it was impossible to judge. “I would expect my level of tennis to improve than where it was at Queen’s and Eastbourne because of the matches,” he said. “But in terms of how I would fare, how I would do in the tournament results-wise, I have no idea.”

The Scot is still not certain if he’ll be fit enough for Wimbledon (Getty)

When asked about the prospect of playing Paire, Murray said: “In the past he said that he didn’t enjoy playing on the grass, but last year he obviously had a decent run here and he had a couple of match points against Roger [Federer] in Halle a couple of weeks ago.

“I think with his game – with the ability that he has and his athleticism – I don’t see a reason why he shouldn’t play pretty well on the surface.

“He’s a tricky guy to play against because of his style. He does hit a lot of drop shots, he serve-volleys. He’s unorthodox with his shot selection. At times he can be quite up and down too.”

Murray was asked how he would feel if injury ended his career. “If I had to stop tomorrow, I’d be pretty gutted because I still love playing,” he said.

“I love the sport. I enjoy watching it. I enjoy the travelling. There’s nothing about it that I ‘d be looking forward to giving up really. I want to keep playing as long as I can, providing I’m physically capable of doing that and I’m not in a lot of pain and discomfort.”