Andy Murray receives pep talk from Tim Henman as tennis star backed for Grand Slam turnaround
Andy Murray received a pep talk from Tim Henman ahead of the US Open as the Scot was backed by the four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist to reverse his Grand Slam form and have a strong run in the major tournaments of the future. Murray hasn't made it past the third round of a Slam since his SW19 quarter-final in 2017.
"I think [Murray's] has had such a kind of challenge over the last four or five years and now he's starting to establish some consistency with his fitness, so now he can play on a more consistent schedule" , said Henman, during a recent Play Your Way to Wimbledon talk with Vodaphone.
"For me, he's just scratching the surface. He's in the top 50 and if he plays the whole schedule, I really think he can be back in the Grand Slams.
“You will see him with more protection and he can still make a very good run in Grand Slams. And that is definitely the motivating factor.”
Murray was once ranked among the best players in the world and reached 11 Grand Slam finals between 2008 and 2016. He tasted his first success in a major tournament in 2012 by winning the US Open, before winning the Wimbledon title the following year. . And he then lifted the trophy at the All England Club for the second time in 2016.
READ MORE: Aussie star shares 'salty' tweet after being left out of Cincinnati draw
But the 35-year-old has struggled with injury issues in recent years and had to fight to salvage his career after undergoing separate hip surgeries in 2018 and 2019. Murray was unable to to reach the heights of yesteryear since his departure. under the knife but has at least managed to appear in six Grand Slam tournaments since the start of 2020.
His best performance since his return came at Wimbledon last year when he reached the third round before succumbing to Denis Shapovalov in straight sets. The veteran won a match at SW19 this year and is expected to take his place at the US Open later this month.
CAN'T MISS Nick Kyrgios responds as footage emerges showing heckled MedvedevRaducanu and Osaka inspire new drama from Line Of Duty producersNadal fans raise US Open injury fears after Cincinnati training regimen< /p>
He's preparing for the final major of the season by playing at this week's Cincinnati Masters. And he got off to the perfect start beating Stan Wawrinka 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 7-5 in his opener to set up a second-round clash with Cameron Norrie. The ace then revealed that his body felt the best it had "in a very long time".
He added: "I would like my tennis to be better sometimes because I still believe that it can be better than it is now. It has not been easy in recent years to stay fit and healthy and playing enough tennis right now I have to play and compete to try and maintain the rankings and hopefully get ranked in the events, get into more tournaments, not have to rely on wildcards."
Andy Murray received a pep talk from Tim Henman ahead of the US Open as the Scot was backed by the four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist to reverse his Grand Slam form and have a strong run in the major tournaments of the future. Murray hasn't made it past the third round of a Slam since his SW19 quarter-final in 2017.
"I think [Murray's] has had such a kind of challenge over the last four or five years and now he's starting to establish some consistency with his fitness, so now he can play on a more consistent schedule" , said Henman, during a recent Play Your Way to Wimbledon talk with Vodaphone.
"For me, he's just scratching the surface. He's in the top 50 and if he plays the whole schedule, I really think he can be back in the Grand Slams.
“You will see him with more protection and he can still make a very good run in Grand Slams. And that is definitely the motivating factor.”
Murray was once ranked among the best players in the world and reached 11 Grand Slam finals between 2008 and 2016. He tasted his first success in a major tournament in 2012 by winning the US Open, before winning the Wimbledon title the following year. . And he then lifted the trophy at the All England Club for the second time in 2016.
READ MORE: Aussie star shares 'salty' tweet after being left out of Cincinnati draw
But the 35-year-old has struggled with injury issues in recent years and had to fight to salvage his career after undergoing separate hip surgeries in 2018 and 2019. Murray was unable to to reach the heights of yesteryear since his departure. under the knife but has at least managed to appear in six Grand Slam tournaments since the start of 2020.
His best performance since his return came at Wimbledon last year when he reached the third round before succumbing to Denis Shapovalov in straight sets. The veteran won a match at SW19 this year and is expected to take his place at the US Open later this month.
CAN'T MISS Nick Kyrgios responds as footage emerges showing heckled MedvedevRaducanu and Osaka inspire new drama from Line Of Duty producersNadal fans raise US Open injury fears after Cincinnati training regimen< /p>
He's preparing for the final major of the season by playing at this week's Cincinnati Masters. And he got off to the perfect start beating Stan Wawrinka 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 7-5 in his opener to set up a second-round clash with Cameron Norrie. The ace then revealed that his body felt the best it had "in a very long time".
He added: "I would like my tennis to be better sometimes because I still believe that it can be better than it is now. It has not been easy in recent years to stay fit and healthy and playing enough tennis right now I have to play and compete to try and maintain the rankings and hopefully get ranked in the events, get into more tournaments, not have to rely on wildcards."
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