Tennis great Andy Murray vows to return after yet another serious injury

By Homero De la Fuente, CNN

(CNN) — British tennis star Andy Murray will be out for an extended period after suffering a serious ankle injury during his third-round defeat at the Miami Open.

The 36-year-old Murray lost 5-7 7-5 7-6(7-5) against Czech Republic’s Tomáš Macháč in the third round of the Miami Open on Sunday.

He revealed the following day that he had suffered a full rupture of his anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) and a near full thickness rupture of his calcaneofibular ligament (CFL) towards the end of the match.

“I will see an ankle specialist when I return home to determine next steps,” the former world No. 1 wrote on Instagram. “Goes without saying this is a tough one to take and I’ll be back with 1 hip and no ankle ligaments when the time is right.”

In the third set against Macháč, Murray – a two-time Mami Open singles champion – rallied from 2-5 down and appeared to roll his left ankle after sealing a game to level the match at 5-5.

He was in visible pain following the point and was given immediate assistance from a physiotherapist on the court. Murray would stay in the match, saving a match point and forcing a tie-break before losing in close to three-and-a-half hours.

After the match, the three-time grand slam winner reflected on the possibility that he had played his last match at the tournament.

“I’ve spent so much of my tennis career here and I would have liked it to have gone on a little bit longer,” he said. “This tournament particularly for me is an important one, so it was a bit more emotional leaving the court today than it might be at some of the other events.”

Murray has battled persistent and serious injuries over recent years, including two hip surgeries in 2019.

He now plays with a metal hip and, in truth, has struggled to consistently compete at the highest level for a while.

After a first-round defeat against Argentina’s Tomás Martín Etcheverry at this year’s Australian Open in January, Murray admitted that this could be his final season on tour.

“I have spoken to my team about it. I’ve spoken to my family about it multiple times. It’s not like it hasn’t been something that’s been on my mind,” he said at the time.

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