Andy’s all set for Aussie glory bid
Sir Andy Murray will attempt to go one better than his five runnerup finishes when the Australian Open begins on Monday.
Today the Dunblane ace will find out who his first round opponent will be and he will be seeded number one, as befits his position in the ATP world rankings.
The 29 year-old lost in the final of the Exxon Mobil Open in Qatar last weekend to Novak Djokovic, who will go to Melbourne attempting to win the Aussie crown for a recordbreaking seventh time.
While Andy has been in practice for the first Grand Slam of the season, brother Jamie is playing in the Apia International in Sydney with partner Bruno Soares.
Last week in Qatar the pair suffered a disappointing semifinal defeat to French duo Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin when they collapsed from a 5-1 first set lead to go down 7-6, 7-6.
Again they have reached the semi-final, where they are due to meet Colombian duo Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah today.
Meanwhile the world No 1 has committed to compete in the Aegon Championships at the Queen’s Club for the duration of his career.
He won a record fifth title in 2016 before landing the Wimbledon title for a second time three weeks later.
This year’s Aegon Championships will take place from June 19-25.
“I’ve always loved playing the event and I’m really happy to know that I will play at Queen’s for the rest of my career,” said Murray. “My first ATP World Tour match win came at Queen’s in 2005 so for it to become by far the most successful tournament of my career is a great feeling.”
He has also been nominated as Laureus World Sportsman of the Year. Among those he is up against are Cristiano Ronaldo, Usain Bolt and Mo Farah.
The award will be presented at a ceremony in Monaco on February 14.