Sunday 23 June 2024 13:19, UK
Andy Murray has been ruled out of Wimbledon after undergoing back surgery on a spinal cyst.
The three-time Grand Slam winner retired injured in the first set of his second-round match against Jordan Thompson at Queen's Club on Wednesday.
Murray had scans to determine the extent of the problem which left his right leg numb just before he came out to play Thompson, and they culminated in the Scot undergoing surgery on a spinal cyst on Saturday.
He now faces around six weeks out, which also puts his participation in the Paris Olympics in serious doubt.
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He had been hoping to play at Wimbledon, which begins on July 1, for what was expected to be his last appearance at the Grand Slam.
The ATP tweeted: "After an operation on a spinal cyst, Andy Murray is sadly out of Wimbledon. Rest up and recover Andy, we'll miss seeing you there."
Murray only returned to action last month after eight weeks out due to damaged ankle ligaments in late March.
Speaking after his Queen's retirement, Murray said: "During my pre-match warm-up I was pretty uncomfortable and then I walked up the stairs, just before going on the court, I didn't have the normal strength in my right leg. It was not a usual feeling.
"Then the first two balls I hit in the warm-up, my right leg, it was, like, so uncoordinated. I had no coordination. Then, yeah, my right leg just was not working properly.
"In hindsight I wish I hadn't gone on there because it was pretty awkward for everyone.
"There is nothing I could do, and then there is part of you that wants to go out there and see if it gets better, you know, and maybe feel better with a bit of treatment or something, but that wasn't the case."
Murray tried to play through the pain before eventually he had to withdraw from the match at Queen's, receiving a standing ovation from the crowd as he waved to the spectators.
The Olympic Games in Paris follows Wimbledon with Murray named in Great Britain's squad after the International Tennis Federation awarded him a place having won singles gold in London 2012 and Rio 2016.
Tennis at the Olympics begins on July 27, with Murray nominated to play singles and men's doubles with Dan Evans.
He has indicated he will retire after this summer.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
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