Andy Murray has recognized that he would have liked his topsy-turvy year to have gone better as he expressed his intent to finish the 2023 campaign on a high note.
The Scot also talked about reaching career high ranks since returning from hip surgery and feels he is heading towards the right direction on the tour.
Murray had some break through moments in 2023 as he won back-to-back five set matches at the Australian Open in the beginning of the year and reached the final of the Qatar Open. The positives also include him bagging three titles on the ATP Challenger Tour to build much needed momentum.
The 36-year however faced difficulties to record deep runs at the majors as he lost in R3 at Melbourne Park and in R2 at both SW19 and New York. Murray has not jumped past the R3 at his last 12 Grand Slams since 2017.
The Scot is in action at the ATP 250 event in Zhuhai in China this week where he overcame Chinese Wildcard Ye Cong Mo for a ‘Nicely done’ straight sets victory (7-5, 6-3) in the opener.
Murray reflected back on the highs and lows of his 2023 season before kicking off the Asian hardcourt swing.
“Look, I would like the year to have gone better, for sure. There have been some good moments, but also some tough losses as well. It’s been up and down,” admitted the 3-time Grand Slam champion.
“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.”
The two-time Olympic champion also talked about his return to Zhuhai Open, a tourney he played in his inaugural and only previous edition in 2019.
“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,” said 2-time Wimbledon champion.
“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.”
The former world No. 1 represented Great Britain at the Davis Cup Finals group stage in Manchester last week and guided his country top Group B to enter the final knockout phase. Murray beat Switzerland’s Leandro Reidi in straight sets in his only match as Great Britain won all three ties to keep the sheet clean before facing Serbia in the knockout round.
Murray will face ATP #63, Russian Aslan Karatsev in R2 in Zhuhai Championships.