MURRAY AT THE DOUBLE
Djokovic sings Scot’s praises after reunion
ANDY MURRAY will now play in the doubles at the Rome Masters this week after Novak Djokovic claimed it was like “old times” hitting with his fellow Grand Slam champion.
The Scot travelled to the Italian capital to get high-level hitting practice before the start of his clay-court season.
But the double Olympic champion also put his name down as a reserve for the doubles along with Liam Broady.
And the pair are now in the main draw after the withdrawal of Hubert Hurkacz and Felix Auger-Aliassime. They will play Aussie duo Max Purcell and Luke Saville in the first round.
World No.145 Broady took to social media last night to tweet: “As the leader of the partnership I’ll be sure to let him know where he should go.”
Murray, who turns 34 on Saturday, missed the Australian Open after testing positive for Covid-19 and has not played since March 3 because of a groin injury.
The World No.123 aims to return to singles in Geneva or Lyon next week and hit with World No.1 Djokovic in the Foro Italico on Monday.
“I was happy to see Andy. I haven’t seen him in a while and it was great to hit with him,” said Djokovic.
“He moves well, considering it’s clay, which is not the best surface for his hips. Considering what he has been through lately, it seems like he’s been feeling well on the court. That’s what he’s saying, and that’s what it appears on the court itself.
“We had a nice chat and had a few laughs. It was great. It brought back the old times when we spent a lot of time on court together, whether it was training or playing against each other.”
Cameron Norrie continued his excellent clay-court form to battle past Roberto Carballes Baena to reach the second round of the singles.The British No.2, who reached the final in Estoril, won 6-4 6-4 to set up a second-round clash with another Spaniard in Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Rafa Nadal has raised doubts about his participation in this year’s Tokyo Olympics amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I don’t know yet,” said the 20-time Grand Slam winner. “Honestly I can’t give you a clear answer because I don’t know. I don’t know my calendar.”