Andy Murray hopes to be in 'really, really good place' for 'deep' Wimbledon run after making Qatar Open final
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Updated 27/02/2023 at 18:17 GMT
Andy Murray has, by his own admission, had a "ridiculous" start to the season. The three-time Grand Slam champion has won six matches in deciding sets, saving match points in three of them. He has also spent plenty of time on court, and says his game is "night and day" compared to this time last year. He also spoke about his hopes for Wimbledon and changes to his training.
Highlights: Medvedev beats Murray to claim the Qatar Open title
Andy Murray is hopeful that his game will be in a “really, really good place” by Wimbledon after looking reinvigorated so far in 2023.
Former world No. 1 Murray has had a remarkable start to the season, pulling off six deciding-set victories, three of them from match points down.
At the Qatar Open last week he spent 11 hours and 51 minutes on court as he reached the final, where he lost to Daniil Medvedev.
Murray has said that he has more “belief” in his body than ever after putting in plenty of training work over the off-season and after the Australian Open.
And he feels his performances are “night and day” compared to this time last year, which could make him a dangerous opponent on his favourite surface – grass.
“My feeling on Wimbledon is that less players play well on grass,” he told the Times.
“More of the guys are comfortable on the hard courts and that probably increases my chances. I’m not saying I would expect to win the French Open [on clay] if I played, but with Wimbledon there is certainly a better opportunity to have a deep run.
“But I also really like the way that I’ve trained in practice these last four months and I’ve not been doing that with Wimbledon in mind. I’m trying to just focus on each day and trying to get the most out of it. If I do that and accumulate enough of those days, then I believe that come Wimbledon my game will be in a really, really good place.
“I just know that where my game today, in comparison to where it was last year, is night and day. In Doha last year I played one of the worst matches of my career physically [losing 6-0 6-1 to Roberto Bautista Agut in the second round]. I felt s***, I played terrible and I had no real clarity around what I was doing. I had issues with my back and I felt terrible.
“Yes, I have some niggles and my body doesn’t feel amazing, but it’s coped really well with the first few tournaments of the year that have been really demanding.
“My belief is that my body would be fine to play seven five-set matches if needs be. Granted, if they are six-hour ones, probably not, but regular five-set matches, I’d be able to cope with that.”
Murray has withdrawn from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after his efforts in Doha.
He is next scheduled to play the first Masters 1000 of the season at Indian Wells, which starts on March 8.
Reflecting on his decision to withdraw from Dubai, he said: “I had an issue then with my abdominal muscle and on Friday evening in Doha I was feeling my abs a little bit after the semi-final. Because of the experience I had last year, it was clearly a load-related thing because of the amount of tennis I played in a short period, so I was a bit worried about that.
“I do have to be a bit mindful of my body now, which I wouldn’t have been in my mid-twenties. Because of the issues that I have, it’s not as simple as it used to be. There’s a little bit more of a science to my training and how much I should be putting my body through. Obviously, last week was extreme.”
Among Murray’s standout moments this year have been beating Thanasi Kokkinakis in a 4am finish at the Australian Open and saving five match points against Jiri Lehecka to reach the Qatar Open final.
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Highlights: Murray beats Zverev in three-set thriller to reach quarter-finals in Qatar
“Because it’s not happened in my career before, I’m aware that the matches I’ve had this year have been ridiculous,” he reflected.
“It seems that I have had six, seven matches in a row that were all epic ones.”
Murray has moved up to No. 52 in the world rankings, still with an eye on getting into the top 32 to help secure a seeded spot at Grand Slams.
He said he was “downbeat” with his physical fitness towards the end of 2022, but now appears in a more positive place after changes to his training.
“Rather than just generically training by going on the court and spending three hours hitting balls, I am being a little bit smarter. When I do spend time on the court, what exactly is it that I’m trying to get out of it tennis-wise, but also physically as well? If I’m being honest, I never really used to look at that sort of stuff properly.
“I do believe that this is allowing me to be in much better shape. I know exactly when I go on the court, how much time I’m going to spend on it and which drills and exercises I do are going to get me to certain heart-rate zones. Rather than just blasting yourself twice, once on the court and once in the gym, sometimes I only need to do it on the court if I’m getting the right stimulus from the tennis session.”
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