Andy Murray admits frustration with 'up and down' 2023 but targets strong finish with first win in Zhuhai

Published 21/09/2023 at 16:37 GMT

Four years ago, it looked unlikely that Andy Murray would play tennis again, but the two-time Olympic champion believes he is "going in the right direction". Ahead of making a winning start at the ATP Zhuhai tournament, Murray admitted that 2023 has been "up and down" for him due to some tough defeats, but he is targeting a strong end to the season, starting in China.

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Andy Murray has admitted that he would have liked his “up and down” year on the court to have gone better, but found reasons to be optimistic as he targets a strong end to the season.

On Thursday, the 36-year-old made a winning start to the ATP 250 tournament in Zhuhai, China, defeating Chinese wildcard Ye Cong Mo 7-5 6-3 to advance to the second round.

Murray is hoping he can put together a strong end to 2023, a year that he admitted he wished had "gone better”.

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The former world No. 1 has endured a long and frustrating road to recovery in recent years after undergoing a hip resurfacing operation in 2019.

The Scotsman almost retired from tennis that year, with nobody expecting him to be playing in Grand Slams four years later.

Murray achieved impressive back-to-back five-set wins at the Australian Open in January, although he could not make it beyond the third round.

Defeats in the second rounds of Wimbledon and the US Open mean the three-time Grand Slam champion has not progressed beyond the third round of his last 12 majors, stretching back to 2017.

The world No. 41 was candid about his frustration, but also his belief that he is moving in the right direction.

“Look, I would like the year to have gone better, for sure,” Murray said. “There have been some good moments, but also some tough losses as well. It’s been up and down.

“I got up to my highest ranking a few weeks ago since I had the hip operation so that’s positive and shows that although it’s not as fast a trajectory as I would have liked, I’m still going in the right direction.”

Starting with Zhuhai, Murray is hoping that he can finish the year on a high.

“I’ve got an opportunity with these last five or six tournaments at the end of the year to have a strong finish, so that’s what I’m hoping for here,” he said.

“I really enjoyed my last visit to Zhuhai. It’s a beautiful city and a great city with great fans. It’s great to be playing tennis in China again and I am really looking forward to coming back to play at the Hengqin International Tennis Centre."

Murray headed over to China after representing Great Britain in the group stage of the Davis Cup in Manchester last week.

In the second round in Zhuhai he will face world No. 63 Aslan Karatsev.

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