Murray warned he’s playing with fire

Renowned surgeon Dr. Hannes Rudiger has warned Andy Murray he faces “catastrophic consequences” if he keeps playing tennis following hip surgery. The former world No.1 underwent a hip resurfacing operation at the start of the year in one last effort to save his career, having been plagued with issues affecting the joint for 18 months. The three-time Grand Slam winner had initially planned to retire after this year’s Wimbledon, such was the extent of the pain he was playing in, but he has since made a full-time return to tour action, claiming he is now playing pain-free. The 32-year-old has shown signs of recovery since getting back out on court at the start of the summer and his comeback reached a new milestone last weekend when he won the European Open in Antwerp. While Murray says he feels in great shape, Swiss physician Rudiger has warned he needs to be careful, having previously seen the negative effects of the procedure the Scot went under first-hand. “To be honest: I would not have thought such a thing possible,” Rudiger told Swiss newspaper Blick of Murray’s comeback. “For me it was a mission impossible to reach such a level with an artificial hip again. But Murray is also taking a high risk. “The operation is known as ‘Birmingham Hip Resurfacing’. In the implanted prosthesis, two metal surfaces rub against each other. “Ten years ago, this method was already used in Switzerland – often with catastrophic consequences. “The stop-and-go movements are extremely damaging, the more so at the professional level. “It comes to the fact that the abrasion of the plates can lead to cobalt poisoning in the blood. The bones can be attacked, also nerve and visual damage are possible. “But I do not use this method on principle and I do not recommend it to anyone.”