Andy Murray withdraws from Australian Open 2021
Andy Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion, will not play the upcoming Australian Open.
Murray had been granted a wild-card to compete in the tournament's main draw this year. However, he tested COVID-19 positive soon before he was scheduled to catch his flight to Melbourne.
Andy Murray didn't display any symptoms, and he was initially planning to join the Australian Open at a later date. However, the Scottish great failed to agree upon a practicable quarantine arrangement with Tennis Australia.
Murray had already been under quarantine in the UK, and would have gone into another 14-day quarantine if he had managed to find a way to reach Melbourne. But the former World No. 1 couldn't find a suitable path that would get him to the Australian city in time.
In a statement, Andy Murray said:
"Gutted to share that I won’t be flying out to Australia to compete at the Australian Open. We’ve been in constant dialogue with Tennis Australia to try and find a solution which would allow some form of workable quarantine, but we couldn’t make it work. I want to thank everyone there for their efforts, I’m devastated not to be playing out in Australia. It’s a country and tournament that I love."
The last time Andy Murray made an appearance at the Australian Open was back in the 2019 edition of the tournament, where he lost to Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round.
Murray has been struggling a lot with injuries over the last two years, and an appearance at the Australian Open could have set the tone for his new season. Unfortunately for him, however, that was not to be.
After recovering from a hip injury in 2019, Murray won the European Open at Antwerp in October 2019. However, the scare of a pelvic injury ended his 2020 season early.
Murray, who is ranked No. 123 in the ATP rankings, hasn't gone past the second round of a Grand Slam since 2017. His last Grand Slam final appearance was in 2016, when he won Wimbledon.
Australian Open 2021 to start from 8 February
The Australian Open is slated to kick off on 8 February 2021, in the city of Melbourne. The 109th edition of the tournament had to be postponed by three weeks due to the COVID situation.
The threat of the virus still looms over the tournament though, as 72 players have been put under hard quarantine. But if reports are to be believed, the Australian Open will not be postponed further and will, instead, go ahead as planned.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has won the previous two editions (men's singles) of the Australian Open. Meanwhile, Sofia Kenin of the US, ranked No. 4 in the world, won the women's singles title in Melbourne last year.