Andy Murray ready for Daniil Medvedev ‘challenge’ after strong start at Miami Open | Tennis | Sport

Andy Murray is fully prepared for the “big challenge” he faces when he takes on Daniil Medvedev in the second round of the Miami Open. The Brit has had a busy start to the new season with the Miami Open being his eighth tournament of the year.

He’s only managed to get past the second round on one occasion though, having come unstuck against seeded players so far. Alexander Bublik proved too much for Murray at Indian Wells earlier this month while the former world No 1 also struggled to challenge Jannik Sinner at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

But Murray’s biggest test will now come in the second round of the Miami Open after his straight-sets win over Federico Delbonis. The 34-year-old will now face Medvedev this weekend in only the second meeting between the pair.

Murray lost the first match he faced against the Russian back in 2019, but Medvedev has improved since then having won the 2021 US Open and becoming world No 1 earlier this year. The three-time major champion is currently ranking 85th in the world and is aiming to climb up even further this week.

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And, while Murray accepts that facing Medvedev is a “big challenge”, he’s hoping to use the match to gauge where his own game is.

“(It’s) obviously a tough match,” Murray said. “He’s played extremely well on the hard courts the last few seasons.

“He deserves to be right up there at the top of the game. It’ll be a big challenge for me, it’ll be a great test for where my game’s at and the things I need to work on.”

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