British tennis legend Andy Murray has heaped praise on the ongoing evolution of Dubai and its Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, which get underway this weekend with the women\u2019s WTA 1000 event followed by the men\u2019s ATP 500 tournament.<\/p>\n
Running from February 19 to March 4, both competitions will take place at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium. After accepting a second consecutive wildcard from tournament organisers, Murray \u2013 who reminded the tennis world of his enduring quality with an epic five-set comeback victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of last month\u2019s Australian Open \u2013 bolsters a men\u2019s field that features eight of the world\u2019s top 20 players.<\/p>\n
Following three days of gruelling practice sessions on the venue\u2019s centre court, the Scot insists he is in good shape for another tilt at the Dubai title \u2013 a tournament he last won in 2017.<\/p>\n
\u201cPractice has been brilliant,\u201d said Murray, a former World No.1 and three-time Grand Slam winner.\u201cThe court was pretty much brand-new when we started, so I got some really good sessions in. The team here have been unbelievably helpful.It\u2019s been great preparation for these next two weeks\u2013I\u2019ve loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fifteen years after his UAE debut, Murray was quick to highlight why the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships continue to feature so prominently on players\u2019 annual schedules.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything has been super easy and smooth,\u201d said the two-time Wimbledon champion.\u201cThe facilities are fantastic, great gyms \u2013they\u2019ve even got a gym just for the players to use now, which is really nice.The tournament has changed a lot since the first time I was here. I mean, the whole city has changed, but the tournament has evolved. With the hotel here on-site now, it is brilliant for the players; it\u2019s so easy and convenient \u2013you spend no time in cars, or traffic, or anything. You\u2019re right here.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey always have brilliant food, great crowds, and lots of practice courts. I think the players have voted Dubai as one of the best ATP 500 events multiple times in the last 10 years or so, which says a lot. And each year the organisers keep improving it, so there\u2019s really nothing to complain about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Dubai Duty Free, said it is great to hear such positive feedback from a stalwart of the ATP Tour. The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships has been named ATP 500 Tournament of the Year 11 times since 2003, including across seven consecutive seasons from 2008 to 2014.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are pleased to have Andy here with us, arriving early and taking the time to settle in and make the most of our facilities,\u201d McLoughlin said. \u201cAs much as we know this tournament is popular among the players, as its organisers we remain very ambitious, so it\u2019s great to hear Andy \u2013 who has played on the ATP Tour now for almost 20 years \u2013 speaking so positively about the tournament evolution and acknowledging the hard work we are doing to constantly improve.<\/p>\n
Indeed, amid a packed early season schedule, father-of-four Murray revealed his joy at being able to capitalise on a half-term school break: \u201cThe kids are off this week, so they were able to come over,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s been part-training and part-holiday. We went to the aquarium at The Atlantis, watched the fountains outside the Burj Khalifa, and went to Miracle Gardens, which was good. We may go to one of the waterparks, but the kids are just loving being on the beach and in the pool \u2013 they are more than happy with that.It\u2019s been really good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now 35, Murray, who made history at the 2016 Olympic Games when he became the only player to win back-to-back gold medals in tennis singles, also reserved some special praise for Scotland\u2019s rugby union team, which leads the Six Nations after thrilling wins against England and Wales.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough I don\u2019t follow rugby that closely, I\u2019ve seen the results and winning against England is obviously huge for Scotland, then they won pretty comfortably against Wales. It seems like they\u2019re probably the best Scotland team in quite a long time and they have a really good opportunity to win it,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Murray joins a stellar Dubai field that includes World No.1 Novak Djokovic, who is chasing a sixth Dubai title, last year\u2019s champion Andrey Rublev, 2021 US Open winner Daniil Medvedev, Olympic Gold medalist Alexander Zverev, and World No.8 Felix\u00a0Auger-Aliassime, among others.<\/p>\n
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