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Jamie Murray is confident that his brother Andy can still get back to playing at the highest level and feels 2021 is shaping up to be a“huge”year for him.

The Dunblane ace was forced to withdraw from the forthcomin­g Australian Open after being unable to find a workable quarantine following a positive Covid test.

“He’s done incredibly well to get to this point where he feels like he’s in a position now to go out and compete against the best players in the world,”jamie told the Bunkered podcast.

“It’s obviously been incredibly frustratin­g for him because he’s had a lot of setbacks along the way. It’s been very stop-start.”

Jamie – who is currently in quarantine in Australia in preparatio­n for the first Grand Slam of 2021 – added:“even 2020, when he was just getting back to fitness and he was just about ready to go compete in Miami, Covid hit and the tour shut down, that was another five or six-month break.

“So it’s been difficult for him but I think he’s in a good place just now.

“That’s just the vibes I get from seeing him training and some of the matches we had in December.

“This is obviously a huge year for him. If he can stay fit, healthy, play a full calendar year and see where he’s at, where his levels are, what he’s able to do week in, week out on the tour.

“He’s not had a clear run at it for two or three years, maybe even longer.

“He’s still got a lot of great tennis in him. His tennis ability hasn’t diminished in any way. It’s just obviously whether his body can cope with the demands of the tour.”

Andy was not allowed to travel

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