Former champion Andy Murray has withdrawn from Wimbledon 2018 on the eve of the tournament. The two-time champion took to Facebook said in a statement that with a "heavy heart” he has decided to withdraw from the Wimbledon this season. The 31-year-old Briton citied that playing best of five-set matches after his comeback from hip surgery might be ‘too soon.”

“It is with a heavy heart that I’m announcing that I’ll be withdrawing from Wimbledon this year. I’ve made significant progress in practice and matches over the last ten days, but after lengthy discussions with my team, we’ve decided that playing best of five set matches might be a bit too soon in the recovery process. We did everything we could to try to be ready in time,” said Murray in a statement.

“I will start practising on the hard courts from tomorrow and continuing with my rehab and recovery and I’m looking forward to the US hardcourt season. Thanks for all the messages of support and I’m excited to finally be back playing after so long out,” he added.

Murray, who won Wimbledon in 2013 and 2016, was scheduled to open his campaign against Frenchman Benoit Paire in the first round of the Wimbledon 2018. The tournament begins on Monday.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 01, 2018 10:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).