Former world no.1 Andy Murray was selected as Comeback Player of the Year at the 2019 ATP Awards.
The three-time Grand Slam champion underwent hip resurfacing surgery after the Australian Open in early 2019. Murray sported a remarkable comeback after returning to the court just six months later and clinching the Queen’s Club Championships with his doubles partner Feliciano Lopez.
The Brit improved rigorously, ranking at 503 at the end of September and fighting his way up to rank at 125 at the year-end.
Murray reached his first milestone in singles tennis at the China Open where he defeated Matteo Berrettini and Cameron Norrie to reach the quarter-finals round where he lost to Dominic Thiem. However, Murray was determined to end the year off on a better note and at the European Open, he emerged victorious winning his first singles title after returning to tennis with a metal hip.
He defeated world no.16 Stan Wawrinka in a three-set match in the title-decider. After losing the first set he came back strongly to secure the next two sets for a victory. This, in turn, became his first singles title since 2017 where he won in Dubai.
Further, at the Davis Cup Finals, Murray played for Great Britain securing their first victory against the Netherlands. He won his three-set match playing from a set down. Great Britain managed to reach the semi-finals where they lost to the eventual champions Spain.
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In preparation for the 2020 season, Murray is all set to play in Australia at the ATP Cup and the Australian Open for which may just receive a wild card into the main draws. Murray is sure to make 2020 a fulfilling year as he expressed his excitement in playing the NextGen starts who he has not yet competed against.
He said:
“If you look at the way Tsitsipas plays compared to Medvedev, compared to Zverev, they’re all very different. It will be fun to get the chance to play against them and see what it’s like.
It’s been up and down and exciting and it looks like it’s going to finish off really well too. I feel like I’m coming through the end of the bad bit and getting into some exciting times looking forward to next year.”
Murray’s impressive comeback and optimistic attitude will hopefully see him improve his form in 2020, however, his fitness remains a concern.
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