Andy Murray has admitted that he could miss the Paris Olympics – raising the possibility that next month’s Wimbledon could be his farewell to tennis.
The 37-year-old Briton dropped out of the world’s top 100 for the first time in two years after being beaten in the first round of the Stuttgart Open, his first grass court event of the season.
Murray lost 6-3, 6-4 to USA’s Marcos Giron, ranked No 54 in the world, after a disappointing performance in which he failed to break his opponent’s serve for the third consecutive match.
Defeat against Giron – in his 999th career singles match – means he will drop from his current ranking of No 97 to a projected No 128 when the new standings are announced next Monday.
Murray is entitled to a place at the Paris Games – which will be held at Roland Garros, the stage for last week’s French Open – because he is a three-time grand slam winner and a two-time Olympic champion but had previously suggested he would only take up a spot if he felt he could earn a spot on the podium.
There is also the possible route of playing in the Games in the doubles event with Dan Evans, but as it stands Britain are only confirmed as sending Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski as their top-ranked pair.
“I need to see what happens with the Olympics,” said Murray. “I’m not 100 per cent sure what the situation is there with the doubles yet and whether or not I will play if I just get in the singles. I don’t know.
“My body didn’t feel great playing on the clay in the last month or so. I had quite a few issues with my back, so I don’t know if I would go just for singles. I need to wait a little bit and see on that.”
Murray – who has undergone two major hip surgeries and has not won a men’s tour title since 2019 – had said earlier this year that he would retire from tennis this summer but has not set a specific date.
Given he has not confirmed whether he intends to play in the U.S hard court season, it is possible Murray’s final act on a tennis court could come at Wimbledon, where he was twice a men’s singles champion.
The London tournament begins on July 1.
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