Murray wants another crack at Roland-Garros, believes he can win Wimbledon

Andy Murray isn’t sure how many more chances he will have to play at Roland-Garros, and that weighs heavily into his decision making this spring.

Tennis – Davis Cup – Group D – Great Britain v Kazakhstan – Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain – September 18, 2022 Britain’s Andy Murray reacts after winning his match against Kazakhstan’s Dmitry Popko (AI/Reuters/Panoramic)

Chris Oddo

April 27, 2023

Andy Murray is enduring a bit of a dip in form at the moment. The Scot has lost his last four matches, dating back to his three-set decision at the hands of Jack Draper at Indian Wells, and he isn’t quite sure if playing on clay in 2023 is really the right thing for him to be doing.

I also have ambitions of, you know, competing for Wimbledon titles and that sort of stuff, and I know that sitting here today that probably doesn’t sound realistic, but I do believe that that’s a possibility.
— Andy Murray

The ultimate goal, of course, is to make hay on the grass of Wimbledon, where Murray believes he can make a big splash if he can peak at the right time.

In the meantime, Murray is struggling on the clay, losing in straight sets in both of his regulation matches on the surface this spring to Alex de Minaur at Monte-Carlo (6-1, 6-3) and world No 164 Andrea Vavassori today in Madrid (6-2, 7-6).

So where does that leave the three-time major champion when it comes to deciding on a path in the near future?

Murray – I don’t know if I’ll get another opportunity to play Roland-Garros

At 35 (he’ll turn 36 in mid-May) it’s hard for Murray to project what his future on tour holds. And that is on the biggest reasons he wants to continue playing on clay: so that he can make another appearance at Roland-Garros this spring.

It could be his last, after all.

“I would like to play, just purely because I don’t know if I’ll get another opportunity to play again,” he said of Roland-Garros, where he owns a 39-11 career record with a final appearance in 2016. “Whilst I feel fit and healthy, I would like to give it a go.”

Competing for a Wimbledon title… why not?

Murray revealed that he believes in his chances on the grass, and does not rule out his chances as a title contender.

It’s part of the reason that he is having difficulty deciding whether to continue playing on clay or not this spring.

“I also have ambitions of, you know, competing for Wimbledon titles and that sort of stuff, and I know that sitting here today that probably doesn’t sound realistic, but I do believe that that’s a possibility. I obviously want to do the right thing there.”

Murray says that in the past, what has happened on clay hasn’t affected his performance on grass.

“The experiences I have had when I have won Wimbledon has been in 2013 when I didn’t play the French Open and won and 2016 I had my best French Open and won Wimbledon. It didn’t have an impact necessarily,” he said.

Sounds like he’s leaning into the French, but not 100 percent sure… stay tuned.

“It’s impossible to say what the right thing to do is, but obviously it’s a Grand Slam. I would like the opportunity to play,” he said.