No. 1 Murray braces for Djokovic assault
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THE ATP yesterday crowned Andy Murray king of the tennis world but the Scot must now plot how to stop Novak Djokovic grabbing back the No. 1 spot at the Tour Finals.
The 29-year-old Murray — the oldest player to become No. 1 for the first time — won the Paris Masters on Sunday and immediately headed back to London to prepare for the finals.
“It might only be for one week. So I might as well try and enjoy it because I could lose it at the Tour Finals and never be there again,” said the Briton.
Murray, who beat American John Isner 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-4 in Paris for his eighth title of the year and fourth in a row, should be top for at least two weeks.
Murray is 405 points above Djokovic in the new rankings. The Serb — who had been No. 1 for 122 weeks before losing his Paris quarterfinal — could go top again if he lands a fifth straight Tour Finals crown. “I wasn’t thinking so much about the cushion or anything like that at the top. I’m obviously happy I got there. It would be nice to finish the year No. 1, but I’m happy that I managed to get there,” Murray said.
The Scot has struggled at the London finals, exiting at the round-robin group stage twice after missing the 2013 event through injury. “The last couple of years have been tough there for me. So, yeah, obviously I want to try and play my best tennis there. It’s not necessarily about winning. I just want to play my best and finish the year on a good note in that respect, because some of the years it has been tough for me there,” he said.
With Roger Federer — who dropped out of the top 10 for the first time in 14 years — and Rafael Nadal both sidelined, and Djokovic short of his best, Murray will head into next season with lofty expectations. “Obviously I’d love to win the Australian Open because it’s sort of the next major goal, beginning of next year, because I have been close a number of times and I have never quite done it.”
Murray’s Paris victory means the ‘Big Four’ have now won 56 of the last 61 Masters events dating back to Monte Carlo in 2010, but the Scot’s return of just three grand slam titles leaves him well short of his rivals.
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