World No.2 Andy Murray will return to action next week after taking a month out for the birth of his first child.
Murray hasn’t played a match since his loss to Novak Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open. He will return to action next weekend in Birmingham for Great Britain’s first round draw against Japan in the Davis Cup. The British team are the defending champions and will be bidding to win back-to-back titles for the first time since 1936.
Last year Murray guided his country to the prestigious title, moving his schedule around the tournament. This year will be a different situation for the two-time Grand Slam champion. Murray will also have the task of trying to defend his Olympic title at the Rio Olympics in August. Speaking about his 2016 schedule with The Observer, Murray is hoping that he will be able to commit to both events.
“It’s 100% Olympics and I want to try to play Davis Cup too,” Murray told the Observer.
“But it depends on what happens this week, because that could change things a lot. If we don’t win, I could take five or six days off after Wimbledon [when the quarter-finals are scheduled] and get myself ready for the hardcourt swing [before the Olympics in August, followed by the US Open].
If Great Britain progress to the last four on the Davis Cup this year, it will be a tiring summer for the new father. The Olympics will take place on August the 8th, followed by the Cincinnati masters on August 15th. Then a week after Cincinnati it will be two weeks of the US Open followed by the Davis Cup semifinals. The potential schedule is a very punishing one, however, Murray is is confident that he will be able to cope with it.
“I’m preparing for it to be tough; that’s why, in the early part of the year, it’s important to get time off just now. After Monte Carlo [from 10 April] I’m going to take a week to 10 days’ rest as well.” Murray said.
Combining the Olympics with the Davis Cup will be a new experience for the 28-year-old. During the last Olympic year (2012) Murray didn’t play in either of his country’s Davis Cup ties when they were in group 1. Murray did play one Davis Cup match during the 2008 Olympic year in September against Austria.
Murray’s next ATP Tournament will be the BNP Paribas Masters, which will start on March 10th.
