Tennis Legend Andy Murray Withdraws from 2023 French Open to Focus on Wimbledon

Andy Murray has withdrawn from the French Open a week out from the start of the Grand Slam event.

The 36-year-old told the Guardian's Tumaini Carayol on May 11 he was still on the fence about making the trip to Paris and reflected how "my best chance of having a deep run is more likely to happen at Wimbledon."

Murray reached the third round of the Australian Open and then advanced to the final of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, a run that included an upset of Alexander Zverev. His performance has fallen off since then, particularly on the clay tournaments that serve as tune-ups for the French Open.

The three-time Grand Slam champion experienced successive first-round exits in the Monte-Carlo Masters, the Madrid Open and the Italian Open.

Tennis is an unforgiving sport, and stars have to become increasingly pragmatic deep into their careers.

Murray's presence has been scare at Roland Garros in recent years. Thanks to age and injuries, he has made just one appearance since his 2017 semifinal trip.

If the two-time Wimbledon champion wants to make one more deep run at the All England Club, then taking a brief break and turning his attention toward the grass-court season is the sensible approach.

The odds of Murray triumphing in London are slim. He lost in the third round in 2021 and the second round in 2022, and his last ATP Tour singles title of any kind was all the way back in 2019.

But it certainly doesn't hurt to try.