Andy Murray jokes about plans to marry longtime girlfriend Kim Sears after Wimbledon

ANDY Murray announced that he will marry girlfriend Kim Sears later this year - but now he says he was joking.

BRITISH tennis star Andy Murray has kept his fans guessing after announcing on Twitter that he will marry girlfriend Kim Sears later this year, only to then backtrack.

The 26-year-old reigning Wimbledon champion was responding to questions on the micro-blogging website when one Twitter user, saravana_24, asked, "When are you getting married?"

Murray replied: "We are getting married just after Wimbledon should be a great day."

@saravana_24 we are getting married just after Wimbledon should be a great day

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) January 29, 2014

He later appeared to suggest that he had been joking, tweeting: "`3 things.. I don't smoke grass, I'm not getting married(yet) and I don't want to kill rafael Nadal..'"

3 things.. I don't smoke grass, I'm not getting married(yet) and I don't want to kill rafael Nadal..

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) January 29, 2014

Murray and Sears, daughter of British tennis coach Nigel Sears, have been together since 2005 and she is a regular presence at his matches. The couple have previously dodged questions about whether they plan to wed.

This year's Wimbledon runs from June 23 to July 6 and will see Murray attempt to defend the title he won for the first time last year, ending a 77-year wait for a British men's singles champion at the tournament.