Rarely has tennis arrived for its annual two-week picnic at the All England Club in such turmoil and uncertainty – precisely the sort of conditions that have accompanied Andy Murray’s rise to the lonely mountain top of his sport.

He begins the defence of his title on Centre Court on Monday as the world’s No1 ranked player but, as when he won his first two grand slam events and an Olympic gold medal, injury gives his demeanour a downbeat stoop. After a Friday practice session in which he served and moved smoothly but grimaced a few times between points, his response to questions about the chances of his starting the tournament was typically gnomic: “I hope so, that’s the plan.”

His coach, Ivan Lendl, says he is worried “not at all”. Judy Murray, when asked if she thought her younger son would be on the starting line, would say only: “I hope so.” After a second hit on Friday afternoon, Murray declared a little more optimistically: “The session was good. I’m OK.”

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With the No6 seed, Johanna Konta, suffering deeper angst with what may be a serious back injury after a tumble at Eastbourne, it would rip the heart out of Wimbledon if the host country’s two best players did not even start. Fingers have rarely been so crossed.

The soreness in Murray’s hip is some way less serious than the chronic back pain that dogged him for years before he resorted to surgery in 2014 but it comes on top of a lengthy list of health problems and a dip in form, so his chances of winning the title for a third time are clouded in familiar pessimism. Lowering the hopes of a nation seems to be part of the Murray playbook.

Yet there is a spring in his step, metaphorically at least. Murray loves the tournament and the surroundings more than any other of his many workplaces. He finds comfort in the soft, lush grass that holds so much history. He even goes there to think alone on his days off, staring out at the Centre Court grass, with little but the hum of the nearby mowers for company. He looks forward to the daily half-hour drive from his home in Surrey – and will hope to be making the journey at least 14 times again this year.

“I’ve felt pretty similar most times when I have gone out there,” he says of the prospect of opening the 131st championships on Monday against Alexander Bublik, a 20-year-old Kazakh ranked 134 in the world.

Bublik has made the draw as a lucky loser, having lost his last qualifying match in five sets to Daniel Brands; he put 25 aces past the experienced German but 11 double faults let him down – and that may haunt him against Murray on the biggest stage in tennis.

As Murray says: “It’s a special place to play. It’s a great court at one of the biggest tournaments, if not the biggest tournament for me in the year. When I get out there, if I’m not feeling nerves and I don’t feel any pressure and I’m not motivated, I wouldn’t be playing any more. If I’m not feeling that way when I go out to play that event, it won’t be worth doing all the work. I love playing there. I feel like I’ve played some of my best tennis on that court during my career.”

He has for company in his ambitions some of the best players to grace the game, of course, most significant among them the reborn Rafael Nadal, back and playing as well as ever after missing last year’s tournament with a wrist injury.

The Spaniard, who is in Murray’s half of the draw, did not drop a set winning his 10th French Open – exactly as it panned out on the two occasions when he won Wimbledon, in 2008 (in that epic final against Roger Federer) and 2010. But that history is long gone. In his last four appearances Nadal has lost to a player ranked outside the top 100, an astonishing statistic for someone with 15 majors to his name. Among the upstarts was Dustin Brown in 2015, Murray’s potential opponent in round two. The only time they met Murray wiped the shot-making German off the Flushing Meadows main court in three sets seven years ago. It should be entertaining nonetheless.

Beyond that in the first week Fabio Fognini, against whom Murray has a career record of 3-3, lurks with piratical intent. The Italian was brilliant winning their most recent match in two quick sets at this year’s Italian Open, where Murray was the defending champion. That is an itch he will want to scratch.

There is then the probability of the battle of the sore hips. Nick Kyrgios retired when his chronic problem in that area flared at Queen’s. While the 22-year-old Australian has lost all his four matches against Murray, he remains upbeat about his chances. “I can win this Wimbledon, definitely,” he said before the draw.

Stan Wawrinka, who beat Murray over five sets in the semi-finals at Roland Garros, could be waiting for him in the quarters, although that is as far as the Swiss has ever gone at Wimbledon. And then, if the calculations of the experts and the dreams of the fans collide with any serendipity, there will be a semi-final between Murray and Nadal.

But that is why this edition of the championships is intriguing. Nobody can predict with the certainty of recent years if it will be Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic on the other side of the net from Murray or Nadal on the final Sunday. And there is every chance it will be neither of them. This could be the turning point in the game that has been central to discussions at every slam event. Might the new champion be young Alexander Zverev, who destroyed Djokovic in the final on the clay of Rome, or Dominic Thiem who embarrassed him at Roland Garros? Or Kyrgios?

Or will it be the bookies’ slight and sentimental favourite, the 35-year-old Federer, reaching for his eighth Wimbledon title, who opens against the quirky and dangerous Alexander Dolgopolov?

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Djokovic’s first match is equally tricky, against the Slovak left-hander Martin Klizan; the Australian John Millman plays Nadal. After that? Nobody can be sure. While the Big Four are back in harness at the top of the seedings, this is the most open Wimbledon for at least a decade, a punter’s nightmare – or paradise, depending on the level of expertise.

Also in the mix is Murray’s top ranking. He seems unfazed by the added pressure: “It’s most likely that I’ll lose the No1 spot at some point this year. If you want to stay at No1 you can’t have periods of three months of the year where you’re not winning matches, not performing well in the big events, which was the case for me until the French Open. So more than likely that will happen and that’s fine. I’m not trying to win Wimbledon for the ranking points. I just want to win Wimbledon. That’s my goal.”

For all the gloom, the sore hip and the lowered expectations, the single-mindedness of the Scot is what might carry him at least to within sight of a third Wimbledon title and the chance to sit alongside Fred Perry in the history books.

Ward takes qualifying mantle from Willis

For much of the week at Roehampton, Marcus Willis was the story. He was the star turn, the likeable underachiever with the maverick streak, flamboyant game and cartoonish appreciation of the good things in life that made him a cult hero when he earned himself a date on Centre Court with Roger Federer last year.

What everyone wanted to find out was whether the man known as Cartman in a previous life and Willbomb these days was going to do it again. Alexander Ward, on the other hand, barely merited a second glance.

That was understandable given that Ward needed a wildcard after losing to Dan Cox in pre-qualifying, has no coach, almost quit tennis because of a wrist injury last year and lies at 855 in the world rankings.

Yet of the 17 British players who began the week hoping to earn qualification into Wimbledon, Ward was the only one still standing on Thursday evening, and the only one whose name was in the hat at Friday’s draw at the All England Club.

The 27-year-old’s achievement is worthy of high praise. Four times he had failed to make it through qualifying. Ward was handed a wildcard at Wimbledon last year and lost to David Goffin in the first round but he did not feel like he belonged, even though he was ranked 245th at the time.

This is different. This is sweeter. Ward’s form leading into Roehampton was appalling. He had not won a set, let alone a match, since April.

Based on his ranking alone, he ought not to have stood a chance against Russia’s Teymuraz Gabashvili, the world No176, in his final qualifying match. Although the Briton had beaten Egor Gerasimov and Go Soeda, Gabashvili has a respectable grand slam record and looked too strong on paper.

However, Ward’s ranking is deceptive. For while Willis was the world No772 when he played Federer, Ward had reached a career high of 242 before being struck down by a wrist injury last year, and his credentials were on full display when he defeated Gabashvili in a big-hitting contest, 6-7 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (6), 6-1.

“It just feels amazing, pretty unbelievable,” he said. “I feel like I really deserve my place there this time.”

His reward is a first-round meeting with Kyle Edmund. Ward had said he would like to play one of the big names but he will probably take being involved in that rare event, a clash between Brits in the main draw at Wimbledon.

Ward, who is from Northampton, trains at an academy in Barcelona. He will surely savour every moment against the world No48. Having won £145,000 in prize money during his career, he will earn £35,000 for playing Edmund, and more if he wins.

His appearance at Wimbledon last year might have been the start of something big. Instead it was almost the end. “I had six months off with a problem with the tendons in my wrist,” Ward said. “It was pretty serious.”

The problem calmed down with the aid of injections but Ward’s ranking and confidence plummeted.

“I came back at the end of January but since then I’ve been on a seven-match losing streak,” he said. “But I came here and just got better and better, and something has just clicked. It’s come together for the best tournament.”

Ward will be the heavy underdog against Edmund. In this case, however, it really will be the taking part that counts the most. Jacob Steinberg