Murray Pulls Out Of Queen´s With Sore Thumb

Briton Andy Murray withdrew from the Queen's Club ATP tournament with a sore thumb on Friday, shortly before his quarter-final against Andy Roddick.

The 21-year-old suffered the injury during his third-round victory over Ernests Gulbis on Thursday and said at the time he would check with doctors before deciding whether to face defending champion Roddick.

"When I woke up this morning it was still pretty sore, I was struggling to pick up my phone," Murray told reporters. "I practised this morning and could hit the ball decent but I couldn't hit a backhand volley and slicing was very sore.

"I had a scan. I haven't pulled anything, I just sprained it a bit. It's not terrible but it was to sore to try and play. There's no point going on court feeling 50 percent."

World number 11 Murray is the only British male ranked high enough to get into the Wimbledon draw this year and the injury will cause alarm at the All England Club, especially as he missed last year's championships with a wrist injury.

However, Murray said he should be hitting balls again full tilt in three or four days.

"I'll try to get as much practice in as possible next week, it won't be a problem for Wimbledon," Murray said. "It's hopefully going to clear up in a few days."

Murray's withdrawal meant Roddick, who received a first- round bye, has reached the semi-final with only one completed match. On Thursday his third-round opponent Mardy Fish retired after losing the first set with a sprained ankle.

Roddick, chasing a record fifth title here at the traditional Wimbledon warm-up, will face a far sterner test on Saturday when he takes on top seed Rafael Nadal, the first time they have met on grass.