Andy Murray says he has no timeframe on how much longer he will continue playing on the Tour and has vowed to continue his career as long as his body allows him to do so.
The 35-year-old had battled various injury issues over the past few years and has undergone two hip operations in order to continue his career. Murray now plays on the Tour with a metal rod inserted into his hip joint. Despite this, he has made a steady rise up the rankings in 2022 and is currently ranked 49th in the world which is more than 80 places higher than he was this time 12 months ago.
Next week will be Murray’s 15th appearance at the Australian Open where he has reached the final on five occasions between 2010 and 2016. Whilst it is unlikely that the Brit will reach another title match at Melbourne Park this year, he has no plans to step away from the sport anytime soon.
“As long as my body is holding up well and I am able to train properly so that I can go on the court and perform to a level that I am still enjoying then I will keep going,” said Murray.
“I don’t know on a time frame or anything like that – if I have the support of my family to keep doing it then I will keep going, if I’m healthy.
“The last seven months, there has been frustration in there but I’ve enjoyed it because when I get up to practise I don’t worry about an injury.
“I’m not waking up with lots of aches and pains like I was the last few years – I found that hard.”
Heading into the first Grand Slam of the season, the former world No.1 hasn’t enjoyed the best preparation. Last week at the Adelaide International he lost in the first round to Sebastian Korda who went on to reach the final of the tournament.
Murray recorded his first win of 2023 on Wednesday at the Kooyong Classic, which is an exhibition event held in Melbourne. After getting off to a tentative start, he beat China’s Zhang Zhizhen 2-6, 6-3, 10-2.
“I felt pretty rushed at the beginning and a little bit slow on my feet but once I started to adjust to the court I started to hit the ball quite nicely,” he said afterwards.
One of the players many will be keeping an eye on at the Australian Open will be Nick Kyrgios who once described Murray as a ‘role model.’ The world No.21 reached his first major final at Wimbledon last year and is the reigning champion in the men’s doubles event.
The two-time Wimbledon champion knows all too well what it is like to play at a home Grand Slam with big expectations on his shoulders. Asked about Kyrgios’ chances at the Australian Open, the three-time major winner believes he is more than capable of achieving glory.
“He’s been knocking on the door the past couple of slams and hopefully he has a good preparation and everything to give himself the best chance,” Murray commented.
“He can do it but it’s not going to be easy.”
