Andy Murray drops striking injury message in Cincinnati Masters days after igniting US Open doubts
The 36-year-old has been handed a difficult draw in Ohio as he will open his campaign against 11th seed Karen Khachanov
Last week Andy Murray sparked concerns over his campaign in US Open 2023 after he withdraw from his match against Jannik Sinner just moments before the round of 16 tie of Canadian Open would kick off. Murray cited abdominal strain as the reason behind pulling out of the match. But on Sunday, the 2012 US Open winner, dropped a massive injury massage as he was spotted training at Cincinnati Masters.
Murray looked in fine touch as he notched up two impressive wins to make his best ever run at a Masters 1000 event since 2017. But just as he looked to reach his first Masters 1000 quarters in seven years, Murray suffered a huge setback which forced him to withdraw from the round of 16 match. He later walked out on Centre Court and apologised to the fans while also thanking them for their support throughout his career.
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Murray had revealed that the injury was similar to that he incurred at Stuttgart final last year which saw him missing the Queen's event and left him with minimal preparation for the Wimbledon. "I had a very similar issue last year in the tournament in Stuttgart before Wimbledon which forced me to miss the Queen's Club tournament and I was able to play Wimbledon. It took me about 10 to 12 days before I was feeling good again," he said after his withdrawal.
“This is not as bad as that but obviously the danger if you compete and play on it is you make it worse. So, I'll need to see how it develops over the coming days and hopefully feel better in a few days. I'm really sorry. Thank you.”
However, Murray returned to the court on Sunday as he showed positive signs during his training at the Cincinnati Masters against Mackenzie McDonald.
The 36-year-old has been handed a difficult draw in Ohio as he will open his campaign against 11th seed Karen Khachanov with Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas up ahead in third and fourth rounds respectively. If Murray can put on another impressive show, at the event which he won twice in his career, he could move closer to guaranteeing himself a seed for the fourth and final Slam of the year.
