Murray backs Nadal to succeed in French Open

Dave James 14:12 12/05/2015
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  • Marriage works: Andy Murray says getting married has helped him find his game during this clay swing.

    Andy Murray insists it would be a mistake to write off Rafael Nadal as a clay court force and expects the Spaniard to still be favourite for a 10th French Open.

    World No3 Murray stunned Nadal 6-3, 6-2 to win the Madrid Open on Sunday, his first Masters title on clay and a second clay title in a week.

    It was also the Scot’s first victory over the Spaniard on clay in seven attempts, but he believes Nadal will still be the man to beat come Roland Garros at the end of the month.

    “I think there were periods of the match where he played like he usually does, but there were also periods where he made more mistakes,” said Murray. 

    “On that court (in Paris) he has only ever lost one match, so when the French Open comes round he’ll be one of the favourites. It is maybe closer than it’s been in previous years, but I wouldn’t write him off.

    “He showed enough this week to suggest that with two good weeks of work and good results in Rome, he can go all the way at Roland Garros.”

    Nadal has now dropped to No7 in the world, the first time since 2005 he is ranked out of the top five.

    The 14-time major champion is also defending 600 ranking points in Rome having made last year’s final. He stressed his priority was not dropping further down the rankings which could seriously affect his seeding at Roland Garros.

    “Nothing changes going from five to seven,” he said.

    “I need a result in Rome to not drop below the top eight which could really affect Roland Garros. If you are not in the top eight you can get a top player in a really early round.”

    Nadal, plagued by injury and illness at the end of last season, is searching for his first title on European clay in 2015. But is hopeful for more improvement in Rome after playing some of his best tennis of the year in Madrid.

    “I cannot leave Madrid unhappy. I have to forget what happened today and remain with the positives,” said the 28-year-old. 

    “There were more good things than bad this week. I think I’ve made a step forward, I am playing better. This season I haven’t played two good weeks in a row and now is the time to do that.”

    Murray, meanwhile, admitted his recent marriage to Kim Sears has helped his incredible start to the clay court season. He is 9-0 since getting married last month.

    The Scot even wrote “marriage works” on the on-court camera after thrashing Nadal.

    “I think people don’t always appreciate that sports people have another part of our lives that is very important to our performance,” said Murray. “If you’re happy away from the court and your personal life is good that will help everything.”

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