Delgado: 'Andy Murray wants to compete vs. Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Nadal'

Former world no. 1 and three-time Major champion Andy Murray will compete for the first time in 2020 in New York, receiving a wild card for Cincinnati and securing the direct entry for the US Open. Working hard on his game, Andy is eager to get back on the court again, missing the sport and competition after numerous injuries in the last couple of years. Andy's coach Jamie Delgado is positive about his future, saying he is still capable of battling against Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Recently, Andy Murray competed at the Battle of the Brits Team Event in Roehampton, together with his brother and other leading British players. In 2016, Murray raised his game to another level, finishing the season with nine trophies and the year-end no. 1 spot ahead of Novak Djokovic. After conquering Beijing, Shanghai, Vienna, Paris, and the ATP Finals, Andy secured the honor, producing one of the best finishes in the Open era and becoming world no. 1 for the first time in November.

Andy stayed at the top until Wimbledon next year when all the tasks from the previous season had left a mark on him, struggling with a hip injury and missing all the action after the All England Club. Undergoing surgery in January 2018, Andy returned to the court at Queen's, playing 12 matches and opting for another surgery in January 2019 after a memorable clash against Roberto Bautista Agut in Melbourne. Determined to extend his career, Murray won the doubles title at Queen's with Feliciano Lopez for a perfect comeback last June, winning the first ATP singles title since Dubai 2017 in Antwerp in October over Stan Wawrinka and moving closer to the place in the top-100. At the Davis Cup Finals, Andy experienced another setback, enduring a pelvic injury that forced him to skip the ATP Cup, the Australian Open and other events at the beginning of 2020 before the coronavirus outbreak.

Andy Murray will play Cincinnati and the US Open later this month.

"It's been frustrating - it's lingered for a while but at the end of the day, he wants to be out there competing against the best players in the world and doing what he loves. He's still motivated and super determined. The goal is to get back competing against the top-ranked players again. His team is behind Andy, that's what we were working hard for. The previous season's closing stages were great after winning the title in Antwerp, and we hope to get back out there, looking forward to competing again. Andy is a former world no. 1 and he could have won more titles without those injuries, although that's not easy to predict. He would have been in contention for Majors. The US Open is going to be very different and unique; it should be fun to see how it all works. Andy hasn't played that many matches in recent months, and we are looking forward to getting out there and compete again; that's the priority at the moment," Jamie Delgado said.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2DKDsB8