Washington : Andy Murray moved into the field for the U.S. Open on Monday when another past champion at Flushing Meadows, Stan Wawrinka, pulled out because he still is recovering from foot surgery.
Murray is a former No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam title winner, including in New York in 2012. His ranking slid out of the top 100 after he had two hip operations in recent years, reports AP.
The 34-year-old from Scotland returned to the tour in June after a three-month absence because of a groin problem and reached the third round at Wimbledon, then withdrew from the singles competition at the Tokyo Olympics on July 25, citing a strained right quadriceps. He was the two-time reigning men’s singles gold medalist.
Murray did play doubles for Britain at the Summer Games in Japan, reaching the quarterfinals with Joe Salisbury.
The U.S. Tennis Association also announced Monday that Patricia Maria Tig of Romania will not be playing in the year’s last Grand Slam tournament. Tig has a continuing back injury and was replaced in the field by Claire Liu of the U.S.
Wawrinka won the title in Flushing Meadows in 2016 for the last of his three major singles championships.
Wawrinka had surgery on his left foot shortly after that, then needed another procedure on the same foot in June. He is ranked 31st and was in line to be seeded if he had been able to play in the U.S. Open, where main-draw action starts Aug. 30.
Murray, who is 105th in the ATP rankings, reached the second round at Flushing Meadows in each of his past two appearances, in 2018 and last year.
