Andy Murray opts not to play singles at US Open

Andy Murray has decided not to play singles at the US Open later this month following his return to action at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati.

The 32-year-old former world number went down 6-4 6-4 to Frenchman Richard Gasquet in his first round match seven months after undergoing career-saving hip surgery.

He later announced that he plans to play only men's and mixed doubles at Flushing Meadows, but insisted the decision was nothing to do with how he had fared against Gasquet.

Murray told the ATP Tour's official website: "We were hoping to maybe hold a wild card until a little bit closer to the time to see how I feel and get some matches hopefully and a bit of practice.

"[It was] a decision I made with my team. I didn't want to take a wild card today because I just didn't know how I was going to feel after a match.

"I felt like I wanted to be fair, for me to maybe try and get a couple of matches in before making a decision like that."

Murray, who may play singles at Winston-Salem next week, looked rusty as Gasquet tested his mobility to the full, but was adamant nothing that happened on the court had influenced his decision.

He said: "If I would have taken the wild card and then not played, then I would have been getting loads of questions about my hip and, 'Why has he turned it down? Is something wrong? What's the problem?'.

"It was more likely that I was not going to [play] because although I did fine in the match today, physically my legs felt quite heavy at the end of the match, and that's probably not going to change a whole lot in a couple of weeks."

The Scot has nursed himself back into the game since his return from surgery, playing five doubles tournaments since June.