Murray taking ‘opportunity’ as Brit returns to China after skipping Laver Cup

Andy Murray is hoping to use the Zhuhai Championships as an “opportunity” as the tennis tour returns to China for the first time in four years. The world No 41 skipped the Laver Cup to play in this week’s ATP 250 event and is hoping to use it as a springboard for a solid end to the 2023 season.

Murray has had a quick turnaround this week, going from the Davis Cup to Zhuhai for his first tournament of the Asian swing. The 36-year-old was part of Britain’s winning squad over the weekend as the nation booked a spot in the Final 8 of the ‘World Cup of tennis’.

The Brit is straight back to it with regular tour events as he is the seventh seed in Zhuhai where he faces wildcard Ye Cong Mo in the first round. Murray decided to play in the tournament instead of the Laver Cup – the team event co-founded by Roger Federer.

And the three-time Major winner has explained that he has hopes of ending the year strong with a handful of events left this season across Asia and Europe. “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 ahead of his opening match in Zhuhai.

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“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.”

This season marks a return to the regular Asia swing schedule for the first time since 2019. Four years ago, Murray entered Zhuhai on a protected ranking and lost to seventh seed Alex de Minaur in the second round. This time, he’s the one with the No 7 seeding next to his name after a successful year that saw him win three Challenger titles and reach a tour final in Doha.

The 36-year-old played several epic matches earlier this season – beating 13th seed Matteo Berrettini in five sets at the Australian Open before coming from two sets down to defeat Thanasi Kokkinakis. In Doha, he saved three match points against Lorenzo Sonego in the first round and five against Jiri Lehecka in the semi-final.

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But there have also been some difficult defeats for Murray – including early exits at Wimbledon and the US Open. Reflecting on his season ahead of Zhuhai, he added: “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. 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.”

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