There has been a change to Andy Murray’s schedule with the former world No.1 pulling out of next week’s Dubai Tennis Championships.
The three-time Grand Slam champion is skipping the event after his wife Kim gave birth to their fourth child on Friday morning. Details about the new arrival have not been made public and the baby’s name is yet to be disclosed. Murray also has two sons called Teddy and Edie, as well as a daughter called Sofia. All children age five and under.
Murray has been married to Kim Sears since 2015. The couple first started dating back in 2005 after meeting through tennis circles. Sears is the daughter of coach Nigel Sears who have worked with the likes of Ana Ivanovic, Daniela Hantachova and Anett Kontaveit.
The current plan is for the 33-year-old to return to competitive tennis later this month at the Miami Open which will start on March 22nd. Murray is looking for a strong run at the event following what has been a mixed start to the season for him. After testing positive for COVID-19 which forced him to miss the Australian Open, he started the year by reaching the final of a Challenger event in Italy. However, since then he has suffered a first round loss at the Open Sud de France and a second round defeat in Rotterdam.
“Physically, I’m feeling good. My hip isn’t giving me any pain anymore and I’m happy with how I’m moving on court. I trained really hard in the run up to Biella so I’m the fittest I’ve felt for a long time. I’m keen to play as many matches as possible at the moment, as match practice is what I’m lacking most right now,’ Murray said during a recent interview with Sportskeeda.
“Most athletes have niggles and aches and pains all the time, but compared to what I went through in 2018 I’m doing pretty well. I’m also much better at recognizing when I need to rest and recuperate these days, so building that into my routine has helped.”
Murray’s withdrawal from Dubai is another loss for the tournament. Roger Federer has confirmed that he will not be playing in the event because he wishes to focus on training. The 39-year-old has missed the past 13 months of the Tour due to a right knee injury. Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal has declined to accept a wild card invitation because he is ‘not ready to play.’
Headlining the ATP 500 event instead will be Dominic Thiem and Andrey Rublev, who are the only top 10 players to have entered into the draw.
