The final time Andy Murray was actually at his finest was all the way in which again in 2017. That yr, Murray performed a ‘brutal’ French Open semi-final towards Stan Wawrinka at Roland Garros, which lasted for an agonising 4 and a half hours.

Murray claims that the match 'ended' his hip as soon as and for all and set off a string of accidents that halted his progress over the next seasons.

The Scotsman got here into the match as one of many favourites and seemed in effective type as he despatched of Karen Khachanov and Kei Nishikori en path to his semi-final with the Swiss star. Murray would go on to narrowly lose the match 3-2 in an thrilling encounter however the five-set defeat would take a severe toll on his physique as he was suffering from accidents thereafter.

Opening up on the match three years later, Murray admitted his physique had 'by no means totally recovered' from the beating it acquired that day. “Obviously a really robust match," he said. "That match I performed towards Stan a number of years in the past was a brutal one. I type of knew one thing was up earlier than the Nishkori match there (within the quarter-finals).

"I didn’t know it was that bad but then at the end of the Stan match, in the fifth set I was struggling to push up on my serve and moving to my forehand, and I have never felt the same after that match."

He later added on Instagram forward of the 2020 match: "Been a long journey to get back on Court Philipe Chatrier. 3 and half years since I played @stanwawrinka85 in a brutal 5 set semi-final which turned out to be the end of my hip.

"It was a pleasure to be again @rolandgarros and an enormous thanks to the @fftennis for giving me the chance to play right here once more. The new stadium with the roof appears to be like superb and all of the adjustments and enhancements they've made for the gamers is far appreciated."

Murray has withdrawn from this year's French Open in order to focus on the grass court season. The former world No 1 has had a series of early exits on clay this year including a recent loss to Wawrinka at an ATP Challenger event in Bordeaux and will be hoping to bounce back at Wimbledon and Queens on grass.