Andy Murray has maintained a positive outlook on his current form following his loss to Novak Djokovic in the final of the French Open.
The world No.2 produced a career best performance at Roland Garros by becoming the first British man to reach the final since Bunny Austin in 1937. Murray’s run in Paris followed his triumph at the Rome Open, where he defeated Djokovic to win the second clay court Masters titles of his career. The clay swing of the season has left far more positives than negative for the two-time grand slam champion, who will now bid to convert his clay court talent to grass court glory.
“I have played some of my best tennis on the clay, over the last few weeks and definitely the last couple of years. Hopefully this will translate well onto the grass, which is a surface that comes way, way more natural to me.” Murray said about the upcoming grass court season.
Once again Wimbledon champion Djokovic will be a huge obstacle in Murray’s bid for major title No.3. The Brit has defeated the Serbian in both of their encounters on the grass, however, their last meeting on the surface was at the 2013 Wimbledon championships.
“I will try and have a good run on the grass. If we meet (me and Novak) on the grass, I will try and learn from the last few weeks’ matches and see things I could have done better,” he said in Paris.
A key area where Murray will be seeking improvement in his serve. During his Paris final the 29-year-old won only 41% of his second service points against Djokovic, a statistic that makes uncomfortable reading for his camp. It is expected that this percentage will significantly rise when Murray takes to the grass, where the surface will make the balls travel faster than on the clay.
Murray will start his grass court campaign at next week’s Aegon Championships, a tournament where he has enjoyed multiple successes in the past. Bidding to defend his title at the Queen’s Club, the Brit could become the first man in history to win the prestigious title for a fifth time in his career.
The return to grass gives Murray one of his best chances of expanding his grand slam title collection, but he faces the task of trying to stop the seemingly unstoppable Novak Djokovic. Major glory on the grass will be a tough mission for the world No.2, but not an impossible one.
