Andy Murray believes he is capable of being seeded for next month’s US Open but admits he will need to play better after crashing out of the Citi Open.
The three-time Grand Slam champion lost his opening match at the ATP 500 event in Washington after suffering a 7-6(8), 4-6, 6-1, loss to Sweden’s Elias Ymer. Murray only managed to win 41% of his second service points and was broken six times during the match. It is the first time he has lost his opening match at a tournament since January.
“The only positive is now that I get more time to prepare for the tournament in Canada,” Sportskeeda quoted Murray as saying afterwards. “I guess if I can address the physical issue I’ve had the last couple of tournaments, that would be a positive thing. I obviously need to address that now. The conditions are also difficult in Canada, Cincinnati and New York.”
The 35-year-old now has a win-loss record of 19-12 this season with him reaching two Tour finals in Stuttgart and Sydney. Overall, he has recorded more than 700 wins in his career and has beaten every member of the Big Three at least seven times.
Murray is currently ranked 50th in the world but still has a shot of being a seed at the US Open providing he achieves a deep run at the Canadian Masters next week. He won the New York major in 2012 but hasn’t been seeded at the tournament since 2016. In recent years the Brit has been hampered by injury and has undergone two hip operations which have enabled him to continue his career.
“It’s still possible to do it (getting seeded at the US Open). I would just need to have a good run in Canada or Cincinnati really. It’s pretty straightforward,” he said.
“If I was to make a quarterfinal or a semifinal there, which right now doesn’t seem — after a loss like that doesn’t seem realistic. But I do feel like if I play very well that I could do that.’
“I’ll need to certainly play better.”
Frustrated with his latest loss on the Tour, Murray has insisted that he is heading in the right direction as he targets a further rise up the rankings.
“Right now I’m not seeing lots of positives. I arrived here (in Washington) early to try and prepare as best as I could to give myself a chance to play well. Obviously I feel like I could have done better,” he concluded.
Murray hasn’t won a Tour title since the European Open in October 2019.
