Andy Murray rolled again the years with a few hard-fought wins within the 2023 Australian Open. The Brit was crushed in spherical three, however there have been loads of positives to take at Melbourne Park. The veteran might be trying to construct on his efficiency within the opening Grand Slam of the yr and rekindle his greatest type.
Dogged Show Down Beneath
Initially of a busy 2023 of tennis, 35-year-old Murray is about to have a superb yr if his efficiency on the Australian Open is something to go by. Murray was crushed within the third spherical of the primary Grand Slam, however there may be nonetheless so much to play for this yr. For these trying to guess on tennis, you may at the moment get 66/1 for Murray to win the French Open. He might shock a number of and win a match or two this yr.
Sunday sunsets. 🌇#AusOpen • #AO2023 pic.twitter.com/VKcQTYK7qs
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 22, 2023
Murray was an outsider pre-Australian Open, however he proved lots of his doubters improper with some stable shows within the early rounds. The Scot might be hoping to construct on his Aussie show forward of the subsequent Grand Slam match, which would be the French Open at Roland Garros in Might.
Scot Loses Out in Spherical Three
Murray had a match to recollect in Melbourne within the first Grand Slam of the yr. He began with an exciting five-set victory over thirteenth seed Matteo Berrettini, reserving a second-round match with Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Many questioned 35-year-old Murray’s health ranges after years of accidents and setbacks, however he proved the doubters improper in an unimaginable matchup with Kokkinakis. It turned out to be the longest match in Murray’s unimaginable profession, lasting 5 hours and 45 minutes. He got here by in the long run on a tiebreak.
2 days in the past I randomly ran into the physician who in 2017 informed me “the excellent news is the issue you’ve in your hip might be mounted however you gained’t be capable of play skilled sport once more.” I believe we dispelled that fable the final 5 days.😉Goodnight ❤️
— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) January 21, 2023
Within the third spherical, Murray went up towards twenty fourth seed Roberto Bautista Agut, who’s across the identical age. Sadly for the Olympic gold medalist, Murray’s second-round match took its toll as he was crushed by the Spaniard three units to 1.
Time For Murray to Kick On?
After years of frustration and disappointments, we actually noticed glimpses of Murray’s world-class capabilities in Melbourne. The Scot has vowed to kick on and have a powerful 2023, and a third-round exit within the first Grand Slam will not be a foul approach to begin the yr.
On his day, Murray can nonetheless combine it with the massive boys. Roger Federer retired final yr, whereas Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are additionally deep of their thirties. However the older era, together with Murray, continues to be able to successful Grand Slams. The Brit put in three tireless shows in Australia, enjoying some improbable tennis alongside the way in which.
The French Open is the subsequent Slam on the 2023 calendar, and Murray might be hoping to be match and firing on all cylinders earlier than arriving within the French capital. He reached the ultimate in Paris again in 2016 – how far can he go seven years on?