Andy Murray ends singles career after withdrawing from Paris Olympic Games tennis draw
Andy Murray has officially announced that he will not be participating in the men's singles event at the Paris Olympics this year.
The athlete, who has won two gold medals, will be stepping away from tennis after this year's Games. He will be teaming up with Dan Evans in the men's doubles competition in hopes of earning his fourth Olympic medal before retiring.
However, Murray has chosen not to participate in the singles competition again, opting out of Wimbledon singles after having surgery to remove a spinal cyst.
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"I have decided to pull out of the singles and focus on the doubles with Dan," Murray stated in a message confirming his withdrawal.
We have been performing well in practice and have good chemistry on the team. I am excited to start playing and I can't wait to represent Great Britain once again.
Murray has experienced winning at the Olympics in doubles previously. In addition to his gold medal in singles in London in 2012, he also took home a silver medal in mixed doubles with Laura Robson.
Murray had already said that his main focus was on the doubles tournament with Evans. He had been mostly practicing for that event in his preparation.
On Thursday, Murray and Evans were matched up against the Japanese team of Daniel Taro and Kei Nishikori in the draw. They could potentially face the French team of Arthur Fils and Ugo Humbert, who are seeded eighth, in the second round.
"Clearly, Dan and I have decided together that doubles would be our main focus," Murray shared with Sky Sports earlier this week.
I believe Dan will continue to compete in singles matches, but he recently spent a lot of time practicing doubles. While I was training in Greece, I focused primarily on doubles, and since we arrived here, we have been practicing and playing doubles matches together.
This improves our chances of winning a medal, in reality. My back is still not fully recovered and playing two games in one day might not be ideal.
Olympic Tennis Format Explained
The same tournament structure used in WTA and ATP events throughout the year is also used during the Olympics.
In singles games, the players need to win two out of three sets. In doubles matches, the teams also need to win two out of three sets, but the final set is a tie-break where the first team to reach 10 points wins.
Who Represents Great Britain?
Men's Individual Matches: Cameron Norrie, Jack Draper, Dan Evans Men's Singles: Cameron Norrie, Jack Draper, Dan Evans Men's Solo Matches: Cameron Norrie, Jack Draper, Dan Evans
Women's Individual: Katie Boulter
Men's Doubles: Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski will be facing off against Dan Evans and Andy Murray in the upcoming tournament.
Women's Doubles: Katie Boulter and Heather Watson We will have the opportunity to watch an exciting women's doubles match featuring Katie Boulter and Heather Watson.
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