IN-FORM BRITON LOOKS CAPABLE OF DETHRONING WORLD NO. 1 DJOKOVIC
ndy Murray played down fears that his US Open clash against Lukas Rosol will be a repeat of their last stormy meeting when he described the Czech as being the sport’s most hated player.
World No 2 Murray faces the controversial 31-year-old for the first time since Munich in 2015 when Rosol bumped into him at a changeover during their quarter-final.
“No one likes you on the Tour,” Murray told him. “Everyone hates you.”
But Murray, the reigning Wimbledon and Olympic champion, insists that the bad blood is a thing of the past and will not impact their opening round meeting at Flushing Meadows next week.
“I spoke to him after the match and it was fine. A few things happened when we were on the court,” said Murray on Friday.
“I have actually gotten along fine with him apart from that day. He’s a tough, tough opponent, a big, strong guy. He goes for his shots and takes a lot of risks.”
Rosol, ranked at 93 in the world, rose to prominence in 2012 when he dumped Rafael Nadal out of Wimbledon.
Favourite
The second-ranked Scot, who has lost just twice since early May, is favoured by some to dethrone an ailing Novak Djokovic next week and win a second US Open title, though the Serbian top seed remains the favourite with bookmakers.
At 29, Murray knows that his time at the top is limited and is setting his sights on winning more grand slam titles, sooner rather than later.
“I would imagine if I’m lucky I’d be playing at this level for three, four more years, max, I would think,” said 2012 champion Murray.
“It’s not easy to do that. I hope I’m still playing like this when I’m 38 years old but it’s pretty unlikely so I’m actually using that as a positive that you have to make the most of every opportunity.
“It’s a slightly different mentality to maybe when you’re younger and like you feel like you have a bit more time on your side.
“I want to make the most of every tournament I play in and try and win and achieve as much as I can the next few years.”
Murray could hardly have arrived in better form, having won four titles this year, all of them since May.
A reunion with his coach Ivan Lendl in June sparked immediate results with victory at Wimbledon but Murray said becoming a father for the first time, back in February, may also be a reason behind his form this year.
“Tennis isn’t the most important thing in my life anymore,” Murray said.
Different perspective
“Probably when I was younger and didn’t have a family, then it was the most important thing. I think having that different perspective helps a lot.
“Maybe I am not putting so much pressure on myself and before a match I’m not stressing as much as I used to.” Murray begins his challenge against Lukas Rosol, the Czech who beat Rafa Nadal at Wimbledon in 2012.
After a quick turnaround from Rio to Cincinnati, where he reached the final before losing to Marin Cilic, Murray took a couple of days off to rest and said some minor shoulder soreness was no longer an issue.
World No. 2