Andy Murray achieved the victory number 700 of his career. Super the first round of the tournament that takes place in the Californian desert at beat the Japanese Taro Daniel by 1-6, 6-2 and 6-4.
The Scotsman thus became the 18th Open Era player to reach 700 wins and now he is one of four who are still active (Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic are the other three).
“Reaching that number (700 wins) is really a good achievement. I wouldn’t say that during my career I have necessarily focused on the number of wins, statistics or things like that. However, As you get older and towards the end of your career, there are certain milestones that are a good thing to achieve.Murray admitted at a press conference.
Murray also acknowledged that it has been difficult for him in recent years marked by injuries and his desire to return to the highest level. “It’s not easy to get there (at 700 wins). I’ve been told I hit 600 in Cincinnati in 2016. Five and a half years to get the last hundred so it took me a while“, admitted the 34-year-old tennis veteran.
Murray stressed how badly he has had the last few years. “It has been four or five very difficult years. When I returned to play good tennis in 2019, I got injured again. Then I had COVID. Until the last five or six months I have not returned to compete regularly. To be honest, I’m not playing well. I am living a physical battle, but also a mental battle: trying to find my game, being patient and not getting too frustrated. with myself, something that has been difficult to achieve in recent months,” he explained.
Asked what his best 700 victory would be, he clinched the final of the Olympics in 2012. It coincided with the period in which Murray considers a turning point in his career.: “The period between Wimbledon 2012 and the Olympic Games was very important for me. After the Wimbledon final against Federer I was very screwed for several days. I accepted that I might not win a Grand Slam. I will win the Olympic Games final four weeks later against Roger, on the same track and the way I did it was a huge step for my career.
