Former world No.1 Andy Murray is looking at the bigger picture after suffering a narrow loss to Kyle Edmund at the Battle Of The Brits tournament in London.
The three-time Grand Slam champion is playing in his first tournament over six months after being sidelined from action due to pelvic bruising. The latest in a series of injury setbacks for the Brit, who has also undergone two hip surgeries in recent years. Prior to this week, Murray’s last competitive match was in November at the Davis Cup Finals in Madrid.
Taking on Edmund, Murray was edged out 6-7(2), 7-6(5), 10-5, by the world No.44 after two-and-a-half hours of play. Making it the longest match played in the tournament so far. Despite his defeat, Murray is confident that his form is heading in the right direction as he aims to peak in time for the US Open that will get underway at the end of August.
“To be honest, I am not bothered about the results of the match, after a match like that I hope my hip is OK, and I pull up well from it,” Murray told British reporters afterwards.
“I know if my hip is good, my tennis will only improve and get better over the next few months. If I can get consistent practice.
“That is my hope. The hip feels good. If I play like that and do a few things better, sharpen up a couple of things, I will play high level tennis.
“My groin is a little bit sore today, I felt it in practice and at the beginning of my match, but as the match went on, it felt alright.
“That was good, positive. Then it’s pulling up the next day, see how you feel, not getting in a situation where you have to take two to three weeks off to recover basically.”
Murray, who defeated Liam Broady in his opening match, will return back to the court today for his third and final group match against James Ward. A must-win for him if he wishes to progress to the semi-final stage of the competition. World No.273 Ward also has one win and one loss under his belt. Falling in straight sets to Edmund before getting the better of Liam Broady.
Regardless of what happens this week, Murray is hoping to gain momentum ahead of the Tour resuming later this year following its break due to COVID-19. Shedding some light on his plans for the rest of the year, the 33-year-old says he will not play in consecutive tournaments to allow him more time to rest his body. He is yet to finalise his schedule over the coming weeks but has hinted that he could start his ATP Tour comeback at the Citi Open in Washington.
“I am trying to avoid playing back-to-back events, my priority is to be fit for the grand slams. If you are competing two or three days beforehand, then maybe it’s not the hip, it’s your elbow, shoulder, ankle,” he said.
“After what I have gone through in the last few years, and not being able to compete at any of the majors, I want to have a few more cracks at them. Get to compete at them. Even if it is for one last time.
“So there would be more chance (of playing) in Washington than Cincinnati – or New York.”
Murray has won 46 ATP titles during his career with the most recent occurring at the European Open in Belgium last October.
