By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday July 1, 2023
Andy Murray is like a kid on Christmas Eve every year at this time. That’s because Wimbledon is the event he is most passionate about and he can’t wait to put his best foot forward.
Though 36, and not the player he was in his prime, the 2013 and 2016 Wimbledon champion has done plenty of soldiering in 2023, and he comes in confident to his 15th main draw appearances at SW19.
“It's always been the most important tournament for me in the year,” Murray told the press during his pre-tournament media conference on Saturday. “Regardless of how I was feeling coming in, I would always do my best to be ready for this one, even if there was some physical issues, niggles, what have you. I'd always give my best.”
Murray, who owns more grass court victories than any other player in the draw (117-27), has won two challenger titles on grass in the lead up to Wimbledon. He may not be the player he was in 2016, when he finished the season as No.1, but he likes his chances on the grass against anyone in the world.
He’ll approach the tournament with a sense of urgency. He has no plans to retire any time soon but he knows that that day is coming…
“Obviously as you get towards the latter stage of your career, you want to make the most of these opportunities because you don't know how many more times they'll be here,” he said. “I want to go out there and perform at a level that I'm happy with.
“I do feel like I'm in a really, really good position to do that. I have the experience at this tournament. There's only one player in the draw that has more experience of playing here than me, which is Novak… I need to use that to my advantage and use my experience to my advantage and take confidence from that.
“I do believe I'm one of the best grass court players in the world, and I'm physically feeling really good. I prepared well, so there's no reason why I can't have a good tournament.”
Murray will face compatriot Ryan Peniston in the first round, and if he’s successful he could face No.5 seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round.
Photo credit: Rob Newell/CameraSport