Jamie Murray pondering whether he will play as fresh doubts emerge over the Tokyo Olympics

Kevin Palmer
January 4, 2021

Doubts over whether the rescheduled Olympic Games in Tokyo will go ahead this summer continue and Jamie Murray has hinted he is undecided over whether he will play in Japan.

With Covid-19 cases surging in Tokyo and some surrounding cities, question marks have been raised over whether Japan can hold an Olympic Games that will see thousands of athletes all over the world arriving in Japan this summer.

The tennis event at the Olympics is set to be sandwiched into a packed calendar for the ATP and WTA Tour professionals and when asked by BBC Scotland whether he intends to play, the elder Murray brother replied: “That is a good question. We’ll see.”

He went on to add: “I have been three times before and while I’ve been very fortunate to be part of it, personally it has never worked out for me in terms of results or performances. But who knows, maybe Tokyo will be fourth time lucky.”

Governors in the Japanese capital and three nearby prefectures have asked the national government to declare a state of emergency to curtail the spread of the pandemic.

“In the name of valuing life, we made this plea together,” said Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike following a three-hour meeting with the minister in charge of coronavirus measures, along with the governors of Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa.

“Corona knows no calendar. Hospitals are getting packed, affecting medical care for all.”

Japanese officials insist they are pressing ahead with plans to stage the rescheduled Olympics this summer, but Covid-19 will ultimately decide whether they are successful in that mission.

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