Andy Murray said yesterday he believes he will be fully fit for Wimbledon but warned that his recovery from the back injury that forced him to miss the French Open could yet further disrupt his preparations.
The Scot said he had practised for only 45 minutes over the past two days but is only hitting gently and has yet to test himself by moving properly.
Queen's, the traditional Wimbledon warm-up event where he is the big draw for the home crowd, begins on June 10 and Murray admitted that might be touch and go.
"I'm hoping that Wimbledon is going to be fine," the world No.2 said. "I'll try to get myself fit and ready to play at Queen's but I'll just have to wait and see what happens. Having a controlled practice session for 30 minutes is one thing. It's completely different to playing for four hours on a clay court or even on grass. Playing against the best players is very different so I've got a long way to go before I'm 100%."
Murray said he is doing three hours of rehabilitation every day to strengthen a back injury that he has been dealing with for 18 months but which flared up again in Madrid earlier this month. The 26-year-old pulled out after two sets of his opening match in Rome on May 15 and said he then took eight full days off, during which he was advised to miss the French Open.
Playing on clay, he says, is the most troublesome for his back but he admitted yesterday that missing a grand slam for the first time since 2007 was not an easy choice.
"It's tough because it's the first time I've had to miss one since I've been contending for majors," he said.
Having reached the final at Wimbledon last summer, won the US Open and made the final in Australia, Murray could have completed a full set of finals if he had done so here. "To reach the final for the first time, but also to get to the fourth major final in a row hasn't happened that many times and is not an easy thing to do so that's why it was especially disappointing to miss the French," he said.
"I'm just trying to build it up very slowly. Hopefully by the grasscourt season I'll be feeling better but it's a process I have to be patient with."
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