Andy Murray is facing the heartbreaking prospect of retiring from tennis without a proper goodbye, having been ruled out of Wimbledon.
The UK Telegraph reported Murray is set to miss six weeks due to an operation on a spinal cyst, which will cost him a final appearance at his home grand slam.
Murray withdrew from the Queen’s lead-up tournament last week due to a nerve-related problem in his left leg, saying he had first felt the issue as he walked to the court for his match with Aussie Jordan Thompson.
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The cyst is believed to be the cause of the nerve issue.
The Scot is now unlikely to be ready for the Olympic Games either, meaning he will miss his final opportunity to add a medal to his tally of two golds, won in 2012 and 2016.
Murray, 37, has been battling a variety of injury concerns for years with the Australian Open infamously quasi-retiring him with a goodbye video in 2019.
While he will be unable to say goodbye at Wimbledon, where he won two of his three slam titles, Murray could attempt to regain fitness and enter the US Open – where he had his first breakthrough in 2012.