Andy Murray returns to Queens for doubles tournament after recovering from hip surgery

The Scot has made great progress in his rehabilitation but it's still unclear what the future holds for him on the court

Andy Murray will be hoping that his long-awaited return in the doubles here at this week’s Fever-Tree Championships will be more successful than his latest competitive appearance on the golf course.

When Murray and his brother, Jamie, played a club event at Wentworth on Saturday, both went round the West Course in 101 strokes. “It was a humbling experience,” Murray said. “I don’t know what happened. It all got away from me quickly. I hadn’t shanked a ball for the last 12 or 13 rounds I had played and I had three on the first hole. I was so nervous.”

The Scot is unlikely to be as nervous when he takes to the court here on Wednesday alongside Feliciano Lopez in the doubles against the top seeds, Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, for his first match since undergoing major hip surgery in January. Murray is always a ferocious competitor but insists that he is feeling “pretty relaxed” as he launches a comeback which he barely believed would be possible at the start of this year.

When Murray chose in January to undergo a hip “resurfacing” operation, in which a metal cup was inserted at the top of his right femur, he accepted the fact that it might spell the end of his career. Having been in serious physical discomfort for much of the previous 18 months as he tried to overcome the injury through other methods, the former world No 1 would have settled for a future life without tennis provided he was free of pain.

It remains to be seen whether he will ever return to singles competition, in which he is targeting a comeback before the end of the year, but it is clear that he is delighted with the way his rehabilitation has gone.

“I didn’t expect to be in this position,” Murray said here as he looked forward to this week’s tournament. “It has been brilliant, completely life-changing for me from where I was. I’m looking forward to getting back out there, but I also don’t know what to expect.

“I’m not putting any expectations on myself, because just being out there on a tennis court again and being comfortable and pain-free will be enough. I’ll enjoy competing, I’ve enjoyed practising, hitting tennis balls and doing all the things that I couldn’t do even a few months ago.”

He added: “I have no pain and discomfort. But when anyone gets on the court, there is a risk of something happening. Obviously I have a metal hip now, so people may worry about that and obviously there are things that could go wrong. But I’m in pretty good shape, I’m healthy and I’ve trained loads. I have done a bunch of rehab. We’ll see how it goes.”

If Murray is to return to singles competition he will be entering uncharted waters. Bob Bryan, a former world No 1 in doubles, had a similar operation last summer and has made a successful return this year, but playing singles, with all the extra physical demands it places on the body, presents a very different challenge. No other player has made a successful comeback to top-flight singles playing with a metal hip, while Gustavo Kuerten, Lleyton Hewitt, David Nalbandian and Greg Rusedski are among those whose careers were either ended or seriously disrupted by hip injuries.

When it was suggested to Murray in January that doubles might offer a route back he was fairly dismissive of the idea, but his attitude changed after he discussed his future with his team two months ago.

“We felt that doubles would be a good option to test myself out and see how I feel,” he said. “There’s obviously less loading on the body, less movement, but you still have to make quick moves and quick reactions. It felt like it was quite a nice progression from all of the rehab that I have been doing. Going back on to the court and seeing how I’m feeling playing doubles will give me some information on seeing where I’m at and what I need to improve.”

Murray also plans to play doubles at Eastbourne next week and at Wimbledon, which gets underway next month. Asked if he thought he could win the doubles at Wimbledon, Murray said: “I think it’s possible but it doesn’t matter either way. I would like to, but I don’t mind if I don’t. I would say it would be unlikely, because I’ve not played many matches.”

Before he had his second hip operation in January there were a number of times when Murray contemplated giving up the sport. “I didn’t want to play any more,” he admitted. “I was getting no enjoyment out of tennis at all, whether that be training, practice, winning matches, I wasn’t really bothered because it wasn’t fun.”

The Scot is still unsure if his body will be able to withstand the demands of singles tennis (Getty)

The transformation in Murray’s mental state has been remarkable and he is clearly happy simply to be back on court. “I just like playing tennis,” he said. “I’m a fan of the sport. I’ve played it since I was a kid and I want to keep playing if I can because I enjoy it.

“Yes, it would be nice to be winning Wimbledon and major tournaments, but hardly anyone gets the opportunity to do that and there are still loads of players who love and enjoy the sport without being able to win the biggest competitions.

“I would hope that I would be able to deal with that absolutely fine as well and just enjoy it. I’ve enjoyed practising and training for doubles, getting ready for this event, although it is different to what I am used to. I’m fine with that. It’s not a big deal.”

Murray’s experiences of the last two years have clearly left him with a different perspective on tennis. He appreciates how much he enjoys simply being on the court.

“I hit some balls with some kids a few weeks ago,” he recalled. “I was practising on the court next to them. Seeing young kids running around and hitting tennis balls, just loving practising and playing, makes you remember that is how you started. The reason why you do it is because it’s fun and you love it and it becomes a passion.

“Yes, everyone wants to do well in their job but ultimately all you can do is do your best. My best now might not be what it was when I was 25 in terms of what that looks like on a tennis court. Who knows, maybe it will be in a few months. Right now it certainly isn’t so I can’t be expecting to put in that kind of performance.”