Andy Murray believes it will take up to a year before he is ready to compete with big boys again after heroic Wimbledon comeback
ANDY MURRAY is preparing to pump iron as he aims for a swift return to top-level singles action.
But the Brit fears it could take between “nine and 12 months” before he is ready to challenge tennis big boys Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
The former world No1 plans to spend the next four to six weeks trying to improve the strength in his hip.
The 32-year-old, who underwent career-saving hip surgery in January, believes he won’t have enough time to be competitive for the final Grand Slam of the year, the US Open, which starts on August 26.
His Wimbledon adventure finished earlier than he would have wanted, with defeat in the men’s doubles second round and a third-round exit in the mixed doubles with partner Serena Williams.
In his , Murray has revealed the extensive gym programme he will undertake as he tries to re-join the ATP singles circuit.
But he accepts it could take up to a year before he has regained sufficient muscle strength in his hip.
Muzza said: “Now my Wimbledon is over, my focus will switch to doing a lot of physical work over the next four to six weeks to improve the strength in my hip.
“That means a lot of heavy weightlifting in the gym, which is a part of training that I don't particularly enjoy doing.
“During a hip resurfacing operation, where the head of the femur is capped by metal, a lot of muscles are severed and stitched back up so it takes a lot of time and needs hard physical work to recover properly.
“That strength is not going to come back in just three or four months, it could take nine or 12 months.
Considering how tough the past year has been, it was good to just get out there and play. As I reflect on my return to Wimbledon, my overriding emotion is enjoyment.
Andy Murray
“I need to get those muscles back to a certain level before I can go on a singles court and try to play best of five sets, otherwise I could do damage if the strength isn’t there.
“I’m happy to be pain free and want to get my hip as good as it can be, then once it is strong again I can get back to competing.
“That means doing lots of lifting exercises with a hex bar and an Olympic bar – they are the type of barbells you see in the weightlifting areas of your local gym and used for dead lifts, squats and other strength-building exercises.
“The Olympic bar weighs 20kg with weights on either side so I do a lot of work with those, but I don’t do loads of machine-based work.
“Weightlifting is something which I find quite easy to do psychologically because you can either lift the weight or you can’t.”
Murray may fly off for warm-weather training to continue his rehab – depending on the British weather.
If all goes well, he could play singles at the exhibition Murray Trophy in Glasgow in September.
He added: “Last year, before I had the hip surgery, I went to Philadelphia to do some reconditioning work and there aren’t any plans to go there again.
“But if I’m going to be here in London for a few months, then I will try to break it up a little bit and go somewhere, because it can be boring doing the rehab in the same place every day for a few months.
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“Of course I wanted to go further than the second round in the men’s doubles and the third round in the mixed, but considering how tough the past year has been, it was good to just get out there and play.
“As I reflect on my return to Wimbledon, my overriding emotion is enjoyment.
“I could play more doubles in the future but ultimately my goal is returning to singles if I’m able to – and that’s my focus over the next few months.”
