[blueberryhill]

^ Nice 

[Apollo]

lol  "To play or not to play, that is the question.  Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the serves and forehands of outrageous players, Or to pick up my racquet and by good defending and magical shots beat them?"

haha, love it....

[marathonarthur]

^ I like it Aileen but...........................

.................. I think that it is hard to try to come back in sport. He is older, he is slower as he has been away a long time.  To put yourself out there uncertain what sort of standard he can achieve must be a battle for him just because he was so good and will always be a perfectionist by nature.  His expectations have to change dramatically and his style of playing likely to need to change a lot to keep in the game.

I am quite happy to let him dither as he comes to terms with all that.

I found it hard at a lower level so for him it must be hell.

[Aileen]

^ I like it Aileen but...........................

.................. I think that it is hard to try to come back in sport. He is older, he is slower as he has been away a long time.  To put yourself out there uncertain what sort of standard he can achieve must be a battle for him just because he was so good and will always be a perfectionist by nature.  His expectations have to change dramatically and his style of playing likely to need to change a lot to keep in the game.

I am quite happy to let him dither as he comes to terms with all that.

I found it hard at a lower level so for him it must be hell.

I take your point MA, but fortunately I think most of us have at least some understanding of Andy's situation, so that was merely said in jest.  If he finally decides he can't be competitive enough and withdraws before the match, then it won't be a problem for us to accept that.  In fact there are quite a few not only on this forum who would prefer that he skipped Wimbledon altogether and focused on playing matches at a lower level for a while just to get his confidence back, particularly when it comes to trusting his remoulded hip, something which I can well imagine will take time to do.

[Tennispark]

I find it interesting that so many of you think Andy is going to withdraw from Wimby.  I think he will go out and try to do his best.  And whatever is his best, I will accept.  At least he will have tried.  It may not be realistic on my part, but in my heart I plan on keeping the faith.

I agree, I think he would have withdrawn before the draw if he was not going to play,

[moonglow]

lol  "To play or not to play, that is the question.  Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the serves and forehands of outrageous players, Or to pick up my racquet and by good defending and magical shots beat them?"

Brilliant!

[marathonarthur]

I take your point MA, but fortunately I think most of us have at least some understanding of Andy's situation, so that was merely said in jest.  If he finally decides he can't be competitive enough and withdraws before the match, then it won't be a problem for us to accept that.  In fact there are quite a few not only on this forum who would prefer that he skipped Wimbledon altogether and focused on playing matches at a lower level for a while just to get his confidence back, particularly when it comes to trusting his remoulded hip, something which I can well imagine will take time to do.

Aileen,

I am sorry I got too serious. I did like  the rewrite of Hamlet very much. I studied Richard III which I am, as yet, unable to modify suitably!

I do subscribe to a view that to win 'at one's current level' and gradually up the standard is my favoured approach for Andy. Currently I am not running against those whom I used to beat (of similar standard before my time out) for the same reason that it can cause a lot of doubt if you lose by too far!

For an Andy the enjoyment, I think, is in the battle and the winning. As you say it will take a long time. I am hoping for a good run in Wimbledon in 2019 but I doubt if it can be totally successful. With adjustments to his play, as the Fed has done (not the same ones), I am sure that he could use his skills to be really competitive.