Swiss tennis great Roger Federer says it is amazing to see Andy Murray continue his career despite all the adversity he has faced in recent years.
Murray, who has won three Grand Slam titles, is currently ranked 44th in the world. Over the coming weeks, the Brit will be hoping to return back into the world’s top 30 for the first time since 2018. Murray plays on the Tour with a metal rod inserted into his hip after undergoing resurfacing surgery in order to continue his career.
Since returning to action from that procedure, the 36-year-old has also been hampered by other minor injury issues. However, he reached the final of two ATP tournaments last year and another one this season in February at the Qatar Open. More recently, Murray won a Challenger in Surbiton which is the first title he has won on the grass in seven years.
Speaking about his former rival, Federer believes Murray’s determination deserves a lot of respect. The two played against each other 25 times on the Tour with the Swiss maestro winning 14 of their encounters.
“He just won a Challenger in Surbiton last week. He won that the same week as Novak got to this incredible record of 23 slams and Andy’s plugging away at Surbiton – that also deserves so much respect,” inews.com quoted Federer as telling reporters in London on Thursday.
“I’m a big fan of Andy’s and I wish him all the best for Wimbledon. That’s his best surface in my mind, especially nowadays. So I hope he wins many, many rounds at Wimbledon in a couple of weeks.
“Andy is a special man and I’m very happy he’s still able to play. He loves it. He truly loves it. I think with all his complications he’s had with his hip it’s amazing to see that he’s still going. What he’s going through and what he’s achieving with what he’s gone through is incredible.”
Federer spoke about Murray whilst attending the opening ceremony of a new tennis court in the London borough of Greenwich which has been designed to mark his legacy in the sport. He won a total of 103 ATP titles during his career with 28 of those being at Masters 1000 events and 20 at Grand Slams. He retired from the sport in 2022 after battling with a knee injury.
Another topic of discussion was Novak Djokovic who claimed a record 23rd major title at the French Open last Sunday. The Serbian is the only player to have won every major event three or more times, as well as the only person to have won every Masters 1000 title.
The Serbian’s achievement has been hailed as ‘incredible’ by Federer who has tipped him to add even more silverware to his title tally in the future.
“I remember when I came on tour, and Pete Sampras reached 14 we thought ‘Okay, that one is gonna stay forever’. Then I went to 15, I eventually ended up at 17, and then we pushed each other to 20 – I don’t remember who was first – and then Rafa pushed it to 22,” he said.
“Then now Novak pushed it to 23 and he looks like he’s gonna keep on doing that for a long time still to come, which is great. And I wish him all the best.
“I think also the way he’s doing it still – he isn’t the youngest anymore, we forget. He looks young and he does it in a young way, but it’s not easy, and I thought it was an amazing victory. So I couldn’t have been more happy.”
Federer has confirmed that he will be attending Wimbledon this year which will begin on July 3rd.
