The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Murray aims to use cup glory as spur
Boosted Scot plans to work hard in bid to follow Djokovic’s lead
I’ll obviously try to use it as much as I can...
Andy Murray hopes he can emulate Novak Djokovic in turning Davis Cup success into a stellar season in 2016.
Djokovic’s elevation to the top of the world game began after he helped Serbia win their first Davis Cup five years ago.
The following season he won three grand slam titles and has been the dominant force ever since, reaching 15 of the last 20 slam finals.
Murray had the most consistent season of his career in 2015 and finished it ranked No 2 in the world for the first time, but a slam title eluded him.
Asked if the Davis Cup could be a springboard, he said: “I hope so. I’ll obviously try to use it as much as I can for next year.
“The most important thing is, yes, enjoy it now, but don’t let it go on for like three weeks and stop practising hard and going to the gym and doing everything properly.
“I need to train really hard in the off-season if I want to have a chance of making this count for next year.
“But it’s definitely given me a boost going into the off-season.”
The first major target for Murray will be the Australian Open in only seven weeks.
The Scot reached the final for the fourth time this year but again came away as runner-up to Djokovic, who claimed a fifth title.
ANDY MURRAY
Before that Murray is planning to rest for 10 days before heading to Dubai for a warmweather training block and then back home for Christmas.
It is a tight turnaround but the 28-year-old is optimistic there will not be any lingering effects going into 2016, particularly because he is not planning to play any events in February while he takes time away for the birth of his first child.
Murray said: “I just need to make sure I get the rest right now because I’ve played so much tennis. If I do rest, it’s not like I’m going to lose all of the match fitness that I’ve built up over this year.
“I’ve played more matches this year than any other year and my body’s responded really well to it, which is good. In February I know that I’m not going to be playing any events.
“I can rest now, start training for Australia and give everything I’ve got there and then I know I get a break. It might not be so much of a break but I’ll be away from the court for a few weeks.”
Aside from Murray, who won 11 of Britain’s 12 points this year, captain Leon Smith has been the central figure in the Davis Cup fairytale.
He has overseen a remarkable rise from the brink of relegation to the bottom tier of the competition when he took over in 2010 to the top of the world.
Not surprisingly, the Lawn Tennis Association wants Smith to stay in the role, but it would be understandable if he felt it was the perfect time for a change.
However, the Scot, who has ambitions to coach on the tour, insisted he has no plans to resign and is already preparing for next year’s first round tie against Japan.
He said: “There’s been so much gone into this year but also the years gone by that I’ve not thought anything about it. I’ve just really been focused on helping the whole group trying to achieve what they’ve done.
“I just want to enjoy this and see what happens.”