Roger Federer believes the timing rather than the nature of the injury that has prompted Andy Murray’s withdrawal from the French Open will be of greatest concern to the world number two.
Earlier this week, Murray announced he would not compete in Paris after failing to recover from a back injury picked up at the Rome Masters.
For Federer, injuries are part and parcel of the sport with players often defying the pain barrier, but instead he feels the fact it has occurred in the run-up to the French Open and Wimbledon is acute.
The world number three told Sky Sports News: “The back comes and goes as we know.
“Clearly only he knows what he has, how much pain he feels. But those are normal tennis injuries to have.
“The only problem is if you play too long with something that hurts it’s just not so much fun anymore.”
He added: “What you don’t want to happen is to get injured in this phase, right now before the French, leading into Wimbledon.
“I think that is what happened when he injured his wrist six years or so ago, something happened in Hamburg and he missed the whole tour. It’s part of the game, it’s what we do, we play with pain very often.”
Murray met with medical specialists on Monday and again on Tuesday to assess whether he would be able to take part in the second grand slam of the year at Roland Garros.
The 26-year-old has elected to err on the side of caution and skip the tournament with Wimbledon starting on June 24.
Murray said: ‘‘It’s a really tough decision and I love playing in Paris, but after seeking medical advice, I am not fit to compete.
‘‘Apologies to the organisers and thanks to everyone for the messages of support. Now my complete focus is on getting back on the tennis court as soon as possible.’’
Meanwhile, world number seven Juan Martin Del Potro, of Argentina, also decided to pull out of next week’s French Open after failing to recover from a virus, organisers revealed yesterday.
Del Potro, who reached the quarter-finals at the claycourt grand-slam event last year, flew home after losing to Frenchman Benoit Paire in the Rome Masters last 16, last week.