World No.1 Novak Djokovic has become the latest player to hail the return of Andy Murray to the tour later this month.
Three-time grand slam champion Murray is set to play in his first tournament since undergoing hip resurfacing surgery. At the Fever-Tree Championships he has entered into the doubles draw alongside Spain’s Feliciano Lopez. The British No.1 said during the Australian Open that he may be forced to quit the sport due to injury, but he is hoping to return to singles competition in the near future following the surgery.
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Shortly after his three-set win over Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals of the French Open, Djokovic paid tribute to the Brit during his press conference. The two players were born a week apart with Murray being the oldest by seven days. On the tour, they have clashed 36 times with Djokovic winning 25 of those meetings. Seven on those matches have taken place in a grand slam final.
“I want to say that I’m really pleased to see that he’s coming back to the court. He’s going to play doubles, and hopefully singles very soon after.” The Serbian said of his rival.
“What has happened with him in the last couple of years, I can, you know, relate to the issues that he had because I kind of went through my elbow surgery in a similar time. But obviously his injuries are much worse than mine.”
The two players have mutual respect for each other and their rivalry goes back to their childhood. First playing against each other in an under 12s tournament in France, which Murray won.
“I have shared my trajectory of my career in a very similar fashion and probably in the same time as Andy, so I feel very connected with him.” Djokovic explained. “We are the same age, same generation. We have known each other for a long time. So it’s really nice to see him.”
At the French Open, Djokovic is bidding to win his fourth consecutive grand slam title and 16th overall. Yet to drop a set in the tournament, he will next take on 2018 runner-up Dominic Thiem. The top seed defeated the Austrian in two close tiebreakers earlier this year in Madrid and leads their overall head-to-head 6-2.
“Dominic is deservedly where he is, one of the top four guys, especially on clay. That’s where he’s playing his best tennis. He’s got that tremendous power in his game, especially with forehand and serve. I think backhand also has improved a lot in the last couple of years.”
The semi-final match between Djokovic and Thiem will be the second to take place on Philippe Chatrier on Friday. The play is scheduled to get underway at 12:50 local time.
