Andy Murray has confessed that he will continue playing tennis until he can no longer compete with the best players in the world. The 36-year-old is confident that he can still match the likes of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz, despite having a metal hip.
The Brit arrived in Brisbane on Thursday to begin his preparations for the Australian Open, which kicks off on January 15. He headed straight for the Queensland Tennis Centre from the airport to get into the swing of things. Murray will compete at the Brisbane International next week – a tournament he won in 2013 and 2014.
“The body’s old, but I still love it, and still loving the training and travelling,” said Murray. “It’s a little bit tougher now being away – you’ve got a young family, which is tough.
“But I feel good enough to compete with the best players in the world, and I’ll keep playing until I feel like I can’t do that anymore.”
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Murray has been relatively injury-free since undergoing hip replacement surgery in 2019. And he is fully confident that his body will be durable for the entire 2024 season as he aims to climb the rankings from his current position as world No 42.
“It’s probably the most positive part of the year for me, that I was able to compete most weeks,” he said. “I had a little injury around the US Open time, but apart from that it was really good.
“So as long as I’m healthy, it makes it a lot more enjoyable to be out on the court. When you’ve got lots of injuries and stuff, the rehab is a lot harder now than when I was a lot younger. So hopefully I can stay fit.”
Murray has reached the Australian Open final on five occasions but has never gone home with the trophy. “I’m pumped. I play some of my best tennis here,” Murray explained.
