“I’m playing with a metal hip,” Andy Murray talks down his upcoming clash against Novak Djokovic

“I’m playing with a metal hip,” Andy Murray talks down his upcoming clash against Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray

Andy Murray has looked in great shape in his win over Dominic Thiem at the Madrid Open. However, not many people gave him a chance against Denis Shapovalov in the second round but the Brit held on and played sublime tennis to work his way past the Canadian to reach the round of 16. He defeated Shapovalov 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 to progress through to the next round.

Murray’s win over Thiem was his first win on clay in over five years and now going by his current form he is looking to take extend that great run. After the win against Shapovalov, he was instantly asked about his next round game against World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. He, therefore, came up with a unique take as he said, “In theory, I should have no chance in the match. He’s obviously No. 1 in the world [and] I’m playing with a metal hip, so I shouldn’t have a chance in the match.”

The Three-time Grand Slam winner reminisced his rivalry with Novak Djokovic where the Serb has been the dominant player but Murray enjoys playing against the World No.1 as he shared that he would like to assess his game by playing against Djokovic. “It’s a great opportunity for me to see where my game’s at and to play against him again. We’ve had so many great battles over the years in some of the biggest tournaments in the world. We played in the final I think of all four Grand Slams, we played here in the final, and I haven’t had that opportunity to play against him for a long time,” he added.

“Didn’t know if I ever would get that chance, so I’ll enjoy it, I’ll have a fantastic attitude in the match, give it my best and see where I’m at,” the 34-year-old added.

Andy Murray will face familiar foe Novak Djokovic in the next round at the Madrid Open

Andy Murray
Andy Murray

Murray started off really well as he won the first set in no time. But then Shapovalov fought back and came back in the game by winning the second set. But Murray held his nerves and feels that his movement helped him wrap up the final set and eventually the match. “I trained very hard the past four or five weeks and got my game in good shape,” Andy Murray said.

“My movement has been so much better than where it was at the beginning of the year and it makes a huge difference to my whole game. It allows me to make different decisions on the court. My movement won me that match tonight. I defended so many points. He has so much power and I managed to defend lots of points and that won the match for me, so I was really happy with that.”

Andy Murray will face Novak Djokovic in the round of 16 clash at the Madrid Open. The World No.1 is coming to this game after a sensational win over Gael Monfils in the second round. Djokovic defeated Monfils 6-3, 6-2 to progress through to the next round. He has a great record on clay against Murray and it will be exciting to see the two rivals go up against each other after so many years.

Also Read: Top-5 matches of the historic Andy Murray-Novak Djokovic rivalry