Murray targets a specific date for return to competition

Good news from the Murray camp ..........

Back in time for the grass season

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/43574607

Good that he's got a definite date in his calendar although he may even play before that. He's also got the option of playing the week after Queen's if he wants to to give himself an extra grass-court tournament before Wimbledon.
   This is the last throw of the dice for Murray but in some ways he can have peace of mind knowing - whether he comes back strong or not - that he's done all he can to get back into shape.
   Who knows, but by the summer we might be back to something approaching a full field in the men's game.

sirfredperry wrote: .......................
   Who knows, but by the summer we might be back to something approaching a full field in the men's game.

Maybe. But in what condition, one wonders .....

I’d be rather surprised if they’re all fully match-fit and at their ‘best’. But just having them back on the scene and competing will be good, nonetheless.

Djokovic's return from injury has yielded two losses and no wins.  Nishikori's return from injury hasn't yielded much to date, nor has Stan Wawrinka's return from injury.  

I am waiting for at least one of them to return to some semblance of previous condition and form - but so far the blueprint seems to be of a Del Potro or a Laura Robson - a recovery that has been stretched out over years and years for Potro or one that hasn't appeared at all (yet) for Robson.  Only Nishikori has some time on his hands - all the others have only a few years left.

No name Bertie wrote:Djokovic's return from injury has yielded two losses and no wins.  Nishikori's return from injury hasn't yielded much to date, nor has Stan Wawrinka's return from injury.  

I am waiting for at least one of them to return to some semblance of previous condition and form - but so far the blueprint seems to be of a Del Potro or a Laura Robson - a recovery that has been stretched out over years and years for Potro or one that hasn't appeared at all (yet) for Robson.  Only Nishikori has some time on his hands - all the others have only a few years left.

Anybody else's recovery or not as the case may be is totally irrelevant to Murray's case. They all have differing injuries, differing treatments, differing strategies on when to return which plays its part as in some may come back too soon and then it is about how they mentally return. All are different so Murray's case cannot be held up and measured against Djokovic, Nishikori, Wawrinka (yet to return successfully) or Del Potro, Federer and Nadal (returned to success).

And there's even a small cloud over Nadal. We are aware of his recurrent knee issues, but now he seems to have developed something new which took him out of the Australian Open - either an upper thigh issue or a hip issue. He was supposed to have returned after three weeks - but the issue reappeared. So probably all the attention will be given to see whether this is something Nadal will put behind him. His powers of recovery are probably second to none but there is now another area of physical weakness (knees and now upper thigh or hip).

No name Bertie wrote:And there's even a small cloud over Nadal. We are aware of his recurrent knee issues, but now he seems to have developed something new which took him out of the Australian Open - either an upper thigh issue or a hip issue. He was supposed to have returned after three weeks - but the issue reappeared. So probably all the attention will be given to see whether this is something Nadal will put behind him. His powers of recovery are probably second to none but there is now another area of physical weakness (knees and now upper thigh or hip).

I speak of several of Rafa's past comebacks where he has returned from long spells out to win slams.

Rafa, I think, will be fine for the immediate upcoming tournaments. No matter what state he's in he always manages to get himself into a good condition for the clay-court season.
   I always make him favourite every year for RG where he has enjoyed a not inconsiderable degree of success, to coin a phrase.

sirfredperry wrote:Rafa ... I always make him favourite every year for RG where he has enjoyed a not inconsiderable degree of success, to coin a phrase.

But evidently not 2011 - at least judging from your comment on t'other thread? "I'm convinced that ..."

No name Bertie wrote:

sirfredperry wrote:Rafa ... I always make him favourite every year for RG where he has enjoyed a not inconsiderable degree of success, to coin a phrase.

But evidently not 2011 - at least judging from your comment on t'other thread? "I'm convinced that ..."

Whoops. You got me there, NNB!

I think this is as expected. To be honest, it kind of looks like his natural return date would be sooner but because it doesn't make sense suddently returning at the end of the clay season, maybe it makes more sense to practice on grass and defer the return to grass. So he may come back very fit and eager. And with the match practice lacking he may suffer some poor defeats in the first couple of tournaments but with that practice under the belt he will probably be playing well enough by the first week of Wimbledon to get through that...and perhaps built up just nicely to be quite a serious threat at Wimbledon.

Henman Bill wrote:.............................. So he may come back very fit and eager. And with the match practice lacking he may suffer some poor defeats in the first couple of tournaments but with that practice under the belt he will probably be playing well enough by the first week of Wimbledon to get through that...and perhaps built up just nicely to be quite a serious threat at Wimbledon.

I agree that he could certainly go very deep at Wimbledon, where he already boasts an impressive track record.

Every reason to believe that a player of Andy’s quality can return to the Tour as a serious threat wherever he competes.

Some young Swiss rookie (his name escapes me just now ....) came back in early 2017 after a long layoff, and has since entered four Slams. Won three of them. All things are possible.

Well Rafael Nadal looks to be back to more or less full health demolishing Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-2 6-2 6-3 on Spanish clay, just in time for the clay season.  And who can bet against him producing a clean sweep of clay titles for 2018 including Roland Garros.  If he wins Roland Garros that would make 11 French Open titles + 6 non clay GS titles = 17.  He is an absolute physical phenomenon and as long as he remains fit / or can keep coming back from injury - could eventually surpass Roger Federer's tally. The only thing that now seems to elude him, and is an indicator of the limits of his body (and signs of aging) is that he is no longer a force on grass.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/43674201

Another terrific DC win for Rafa who allowed A Zverev just nine games in a straight-sets victory to bring Spain to 2-2 in their DC q-f with Germany. All now rests on the final match between Ferrer and Kohlschreiber.
   Elsewhere USA bt Belgium 3-0 and it looks like Croatia will bt Kazakhstan. DC holders France are just about to serve for the match, and the tie, against Italy.

LATER: France and Croatia both thru to the semis, as are Spain where Ferrer has just beaten Kohl 7-5 in the fifth after nearly five hours.

sirfredperry wrote:... LATER: France and Croatia both thru to the semis, as are Spain where Ferrer has just beaten Kohl 7-5 in the fifth after nearly five hours.

An incredible match between old timers 36 year old David Ferrer and 34 year old Phillip Kohlschreiber, with David Ferrer eventually winning and sending Spain through to the Davis Cup semi-final 7-6 (7-1) 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 4-6 7-5.

It doesn't get any easier for Spain as they are drawn away to France for the semi-final.

Normally, France would want to play the semi on clay. But against Spain? Wonder if Rafa will play? Quite natural for him to turn out in a home, clay-court DC match at the beginning of the clay-court season, but will he want to compete in September after the USO?

Some perfectly valid comments re DC happenings and Rafa in particular.

But what on earth is it doing on a thread specifically opened to discuss Andy Murray’s return to the Tour .....

lags72 wrote: Some perfectly valid comments re DC happenings and Rafa in particular.

But what on earth is it doing on a thread specifically opened to discuss Andy Murray’s return to the Tour .....

Yeah, I know. I did think of opening a DC thread but things have been very quiet on here of late and I thought it best to continue with this post.
   We're in to the clay-court season pretty much now, so specific tournaments can be discussed. Should make things better.

In a shock development, it was announced today by the All England Club that Andy Murray will meet defending champion Roger Federer in the opening round at Wimbledon 2018.

Okay, so this is total speculation on my part. Especially as the draw is of course still several weeks away.

However ....... the reality is that it could indeed happen. Murray is hoping to be fit & ready to compete ; but, if so, is almost certainly going to be outside the top 32 ranking spots - which traditionally are followed very closely for seeding purposes by the SW19 committee - when the draw itself is actually made. No special exceptions will apparently be accorded to favour the Scot.

It seems a scary prospect for what would be a fairly rusty Andy M. Although equally .... I doubt any of the other top guys would be overjoyed at the prospect either, given just how many upsets can happen in nervy R1 Slam matches, even at the best of times, combined of course with his impressive record on grass.

Yes, an early meeting with a big seed is a possibility for Murray at Wimbledon. In the women's, though, the arrangement is different and there is speculation that Serena could be seeded highly - even number one. That would at least be a relief for the other women at the top of the rankings.
   Don't suppose Murray is going to be too worried about results to start with, as long as he can move reasonably well and not be in discomfort. Also, after Wimbledon he won't have any points to defend.

A lot would depend on when (or if) he gets back on court before Wimbledon for match sharpness. I know he is targeting the grass season and has entered the Libema Open in the Netherlands and Queens. There could also be the chance of playing a Challenger such as Surbiton or getting a couple of exhibitions at Boodles. So, if fit, there are opportunities to build up match fitness on grass.

He got to the Q/F at Wimbledon last year whilst hardly able to move in some of his matches. So if at a reasonable level of match fitness would be a challenge for most players.

We will not, however, know how the hip surgery has gone and the effect that it has had until he starts playing competitively again.

Totally agree with Calder.

Little steps....that is what it is all about for Andy just now. First and foremost for Andy is getting back into competitive tennis matches and coming through them with the hip giving him no problem. That is his goal. First basecamp - back playing competitive tennis. Second basecamp - the hip being absolutely fine. Then work on match sharpness/fitness and getting back into the swing of things. Thereafter anything else he gets from his tennis career is a bonus.

Judy says Andy Murray will make a statement later this week. Sounds a bit ominous and I've been trying to read between the lines of what she said. It could well be that Andy will say he's not ready yet but she says he is on the practice court and she's "keeping her fingers crossed".

Murray has delayed his return but still hopes to play Wimbledon. Gosh, this has all been dragging on for a long time, but quite rightly Andy is determined not to come back too soon.