FIT FED THE MODEL ANDY SHOULD COPY

LEON SMITH, Andy Murray’s first coach and the current Great Britain Davis Cup captain, says he can take inspiration from how Tuesday night’s opponent Roger Federer has returned to his best form after a six-month break.

Federer might have come from nowhere to lift the Australian Open title in January but in all likelihood Murray, and the other returning heavyweights such as Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka, will still be playing catch- up when it comes to Melbourne. Assuming, that is, that the Scot sticks to his current timetable, which envisages a shorter than usual training block in Miami and arriving in Australia early prior to playing the traditional warm-up event in Brisbane.

“I would have thought Andy could be inspired by what Roger has done,” said Smith. “And he has done it before when he had back surgery. That was a significant injury. He went through it so methodically and got back play- ing better than before. There is no reason why he can’t it again.

“But the important thing is for him to take his time,” Smith added. “Andy has said that he will come back when he is 100 per cent fit. He obviously tried to come back too quickly for the US Open. He probably regrets that.

“The first time I saw Andy was last Wednesday and I thought he looked good. It must be bloody frustrating knowing what you can or should be doing with the ball when it comes to points. It can feel good in a controlled environment and then you go to the randomness of points.

“The medical data that is available is way better these days. Players can use that to extend their careers. It’s quite amazing we’ve had no Andy, Novak or Stan. The year before there was no Roger or Rafa. Nishikori and Raonic were out, too. Now we’ve got a resurgence coming back to Australia and everyone is saying: Oh my God. It will be amazing seeing them all back.”