Andy Murray has reflected on his exit from the Paris Masters and says the rest he will get this week will help him in London next week. The tired Scot had gone out of the tournament after a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Radek Stepanek.
Murray faced Stepanek just 16 hours after defeating James Blake in the early hours of Thursday morning and showed signs of fatigue I the second and third steps. The world number four has only recently returned to playing after a wrist injury and had made a winning return in the Valencia Open last week.
Now, Murray will rest ahead of the end of season Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena in London and says the rest will benefit him after a hard workout as he comes back from the niggling injury.
"Obviously to win a tournament after that long out was great,” he told the ATP’s website.
"I wanted to try and play as many matches as possible. I would have signed up for playing seven matches and winning six of them before these couple of tournaments, and it was kind of just what I needed before London.
"I get nine days' rest to get rid of all the niggles and stiffness. I'll be feeling good going in there, I'm sure, a lot better than I would have been if I had gone out early both weeks."
The British number one will now target a winning end to the season as he prepares for the World Tour Finals. However, the elite competition will throw up some tough tests as the best in the world face each other in London.
Murray qualified comfortably in fourth place for the tournament, which sees the top eight players in the ATP ranking compete for the title. Each player has three round-robin matches and the top pair from each of the two groups go through to the final. With Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Juan- Martin Del Potro already confirmed for the tournament, Murray will face some stiff competition.
Following the London showdown the Scot will jet to America as he leaves nothing to chance in his preparations for the new season. With his eye firmly on winning his first Grand Slam at the Australian Open, Murray will forgo a family Christmas in favour of training in Miami.
