Andy Murray broke down in tears as he revealed he plans to end his career at Wimbledon, but admitted he may not make it past next week’s Australian Open.
The two-time Wimbledon champion, who has been struggling to recover from hip surgery, was overcome by emotion as he made the announcement in Melbourne.
Murray, 31, has battled to recover from a chronic hip condition for more than 18 months, and had surgery on his right hip last January before returning to tennis in June.
During an emotional press conference in the Australian city, the former world number one said the pain has become almost unbearable for him to play on.
He said his first-round match against Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut on Monday may prove to be the final match of his illustrious career, but that he hopes to play on until Wimbledon.
"I've pretty much done everything that I could to try and get my hip feeling better and it hasn't helped loads. I'm in a better place than I was six months ago but still in a lot of pain. It's been tough," Murray said.
He added: "During my training block (in Miami last month) I spoke to my team and told them I can't keep doing this. I needed to have an end point because I was sort of playing with no idea when the pain was going to stop.
"I said to my team, look I think I can get through this until Wimbledon. That's where I'd like to stop playing. But I'm also not certain I'm able to do that."
After pause while Murray sat with his head on the desk, he was asked whether this might be his last tournament.
"Yes I think there's a chance of that for sure because I'm not sure I'm able to play through the pain for another four or five months," he said.
"I have an option to have another operation, which is a little bit more severe than what I've had before in having my hip resurfaced, which will allow me to have a better quality of life and be out of pain.
"That's something I'm seriously considering right now. Some athletes have had that and gone back to competing but there's obviously no guarantees with that and the reason for having an operation like that is not to return to professional sport, it's just for a better quality of life."
