Andy Murray issues ‘disappointing’ injury update after ankle assessment

Andy Murray has confirmed he will be out of action until at least the end of April at the earliest after ruling himself out of next month’s Monte Carlo Masters and BMW Open in Munich due to injury.

Murray ruptured ankle ligaments during his Miami Open defeat to Tomas Machac last week, with the 36-year-old set to be out for the “extended period” and facing a race against time to be fit for Wimbledon.

This summer’s Wimbledon was expected to be Murray’s last appearance at the Championships before the World No 1 retires, but Murray confirmed he is still aiming to get back to court “as soon as possible”.

A statement from the two-time Wimbledon champion’s management team said: “Following consultation with his team and medical experts, Andy Murray has taken the decision to miss the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters and BMW Open Munich.

"At this stage, it is still not clear how long Andy will be out of action, and he is continuing to review options with his medical team.

"Obviously this is very disappointing news for Andy and he has reiterated his desire to get back on court as soon as possible.

"He thanks all his fans for their kind messages of support and will continue to update everybody as the situation evolves."

The three-time grand slam champion had previously said that he does not expect to continue his career beyond the summer.

Murray, who turns 37 in May, twisted his left ankle towards the end of his marathon three-set defeat to Machac in third round of the Miami Open last Sunday.

The Scot was able to finish the match after receiving treatment from a physio, but confirmed the extent of the injury in a post on Instagram on Monday.

“I suffered a full rupture of my ATFL [anterior talofibular ligament] and near full thickness rupture of my CFL [calcaneofibular ligament],” he said.

“I will see an ankle specialist when I return home to determine next steps. Goes without saying this is a tough one to take and I’ll be out for an extended period.

“But I’ll be back with one hip and no ankle ligaments when the time is right.”

This year’s Championships begin on 1 July, but a full rupture of his ankle ligaments could force Murray to be on the sidelines for months rather than weeks.

The start of the British grass-court season is less than 10 weeks away.