ANDY MURRAY will decide this weekend whether he will play in the French Open.

The 26-year-old will have a scan today on the back injury that led to his withdrawal from the Italian Open in Rome on Wednesday, with sources saying the world No.2 will then sit down with his team to decide if he will play at Roland Garros.

The French Open, which starts on May 26, ends just a fortnight before Wimbledon, and the Scot will be determined to arrive in SW19 at peak fitness after reaching the final at the All England Club last year.

His mother, Judy, confirmed this belief yesterday, saying: "He needs to be cautious and I'm sure Wimbledon will be his priority."

Murray said immediately after his withdrawal against Marcel Gronollers that he would be "very surprised" if he played in Paris later this month.

Judy Murray said: "Obviously the goal is to be in peak condition for Wimbledon." Of the injury, she said: "It's something to do with his back but the scan will let him see what the injury is and what needs to be done.

"Often you pick up niggles when you change surfaces. Each surface brings its own problems and challenges. This back issue has been rumbling for a week or so. It's not so easy on the clay. There is a lot more twisting and turning."

Murray struggled with a lower-back problem throughout the clay season last year. His back went into spasm against Jarkko Nieminen at Roland Garros, but the Scot played on to win before being beaten in the quarter-final by David Ferrer.

Murray said on Wednesday: "Until Madrid it had been okay, but it's not been perfect for a long period. You always go into matches with little niggles and such, but it's frustrating when for a long period you're hurting. It's been an issue for a while now and I want to make sure it goes away. It's not enjoyable when you're playing in pain."

Wimbledon starts on June 24 and Murray now must weigh up if it is worth taking a risk on his fitness and playing in a Grand Slam on clay he is unlikely to win and so compromise his chances on grass.

Ivan Lendl, Murray's coach, missed the French Open on two occasions in unsuccessful attempts to win Wimbledon, the only Grand Slam that eluded him.

Novak Djokovic, the world No.1, said it would be "a loss" for the French Open if his friend and rival did not play. He added: "It's a pity but hopefully he has some time to recover."

The Serb, who has never won the French Open, said : "I always like to give my maximum in every match and every tournament I play. It can be the right thing or the wrong thing to do according to the various opinions of different people, but it is the way I've been taught and brought up in this sport. That's the way I've played all my life.

"I just like to compete, regardless of which tournament it is."

Djokovic, meanwhile, cruised into the quarter-finals in Rome with a 6-1, 6-4 victory against Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov, while Roger Federer beat Gilles Simon 6-1, 6-2.

Rafael Nadal recovered from a nightmare first set to dispatch Latvian qualifier Ernests Gulbis and book his place in the last eight.

Nadal narrowly avoided losing the first set to love against the world No.46, who broke the Spaniard twice in succession from the start to surge into a 5-0 lead.

But despite also threatening early in the second set, Gulbis could not close out what would have been a famous win as Nadal rallied to win 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 in two hours and 37 minutes.

Nadal will play compatriot David Ferrer in the last eight.