Murray skips Tokyo with Tour Finals in mind
Originally published on: 26/02/10 11:46
Andy Murray has withdrawn from next week’s Japan Open in a bid to recover from his left wrist injury in time for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.
But Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will play at the China Open next week, returning to the Beijing venue where he won last year’s Olympic tennis gold medal.
Murray had hoped to return in Tokyo as a warm-up to the Shanghai Masters 1000 once scans had revealed “no long-term damage” after he played three Davis Cup rubbers in three days against Poland.
But the 22-year-old, who developed the problem prior to the US Open, is focused on playing in the season finale at London’s O2 Arena.
“Andy is disappointed not to be competing in Japan, but on the basis of medical advice, he has decided to give his left wrist further time to recover,” said a statement on his website.
“His injury is improving on a daily basis and Andy is very close to resuming full-training. The wrist will be assessed again this weekend.”
Murray himself said: “there’s a big tournament in London at the end of the year and I want to make sure I’m fit for that.”
Murray has already qualified for the World Tour Finals, along with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, defending champion Novak Djokovic, and US Open winner Juan Martin del Potro, with three spots still up for grabs.
“The pain’s bearable but I need to decide what to do next,” said Murray, who has visited the specialist who dealt with his right wrist injury in 2007.
“It’s such a short turnaround at the end of the year, and the preparations for Australia have to be very good because of the conditions so I need to decide when I can fit in a long break.
“Whether that’s 14 days or longer, you just have to be careful with wrists and not keep playing when there’s something wrong because the problem doesn’t go away.”
The news was much more positive from the Nadal camp, as the Spaniard has confirmed he will return to action at next week’s China Open after skipping Davis Cup duty to rest an abdominal strain.
“Rafa Nadal will return to competition next week,” according to a statement on his official website, before adding: “after long hours of tedious exams, it was concluded that Rafa is physically fit for competition.”
Nadal also announced his intention to play at the Shanghai and Paris Masters 1000 events, the ATP World Tour Finals and round off his season by representing his country in the Davis Cup final against the Czech Republic.
The China Open will be the first major event to be played at the Beijing Olympic Tennis Centre since last summer’s Olympic Games, where Nadal won men’s singles gold.
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