What a difference a year makes. Andy Murray is poised to open his bid for a second US Open crown, entering the final Grand Slam of the year in top form following a title run at the Rogers Cup in Montreal. Up to World No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, Murray is six spots higher than he was exactly one year ago, when he began his mad dash to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.
Tension and injury free, the Scot says he is in the right state of mind.
“Probably in the last couple of years, I was coming in pretty stressed,” Murray said. “I had problems with my back and was struggling to deal with that. I wasn’t enjoying the practising and preparation because I was in pain. I found it difficult. But now I feel healthier, I feel calmer, I feel more relaxed. That’s how I feel different.
“I’ve worked extremely hard to get back to where I am. I had a lot of downs last year, a lot of test moments last year. But I came through that well and kept believing myself and got the right people around me to help me come through that. People that believed in me. I’ve done well to get where I’m at and I’ll keep working hard to hopefully have a good run here and put myself in a position to win the event.”
Murray opens with a blockbuster battle against Aussie young gun and World No. 37 Nick Kyrgios. They are set to meet for the third time this year on the Grand Slam stage, with the Dunblane native claiming straight-set wins in the Australian Open quarter-finals and Roland Garros third round.
“I think he likes playing on big stages,” Murray added. “That’s where he’s played his best tennis throughout his career. Last year he’d only won one or two matches outside of slams in the whole year. This year, his results have been inconsistent but at the Slams he made quarter-finals (at Wimbledon 2014 and Australian Open 2015). In Australia, I played him in the third round at the French and at Wimbledon he was close to reaching the quarters again there. I would expect him to be ready for the match. He gets himself fired up for the big events.
“I’ve played well, I’ve played smart tennis, tried to come up with a game plan that has made it tough for him. If you watch the matches, you’ll see what I’ve been doing. I tried to mix my game up and that’s my game style something I’ve worked on the last 18 months. And it’s worked well for me earlier this year and something I’ll try to do again here.”
Murray, the Emirates Airline US Open Series champion, could potentially meet 15th seed Kevin Anderson in the fourth round, with a quarter-final clash against fifth seed Stan Wawrinka also looming.
The 2015 US Open gets underway on Monday.
( Courtesy of the ATP and Original Link – http://www.atpworldtour.com/
Topics: andy, Andy Murray, british number one, British Tennis, murray us open, Scottish tennis, Tennis News, US Open
@andy_murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play #tennis at the @usopen – http://t.co/qFPNLQ3nBf #tennis @AndyMurrayFans @andymurrayblog
RT @10sBalls_com: @andy_murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play #tennis at the @usopen – http://t.co/qFPNLQ3nBf #tennis @AndyMurrayFa…
“@TennisNewsOne: Andy Murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play Great Tennis at the US Open http://t.co/oH8se51feQ #tennis”@luciahoff
RT @TennisNewsOne: Andy Murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play Great Tennis at the US Open http://t.co/4lMrILcTHN #tennis
RT @TennisNewsOne: Andy Murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play Great Tennis at the US Open http://t.co/4lMrILcTHN #tennis
RT @10sBalls_com: @andy_murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play #tennis at the @usopen – http://t.co/qFPNLQ3nBf #tennis @AndyMurrayFa…
RT @10sBalls_com: @andy_murray Tension and Injury Free; Ready To Play #tennis at the @usopen – http://t.co/qFPNLQ3nBf #tennis @AndyMurrayFa…
@Andy_murray is on great form and looking more than ready for the @usopen will you be watching? http://t.co/i808qqBdwz
RT @ElenaFoundation: @Andy_murray is on great form and looking more than ready for the @usopen will you be watching? http://t.co/i808qqBdwz