	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 18, 2017

Andy Murray

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

A. MURRAY/A. Rublev

6-3, 6-0, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Can you confirm what you said immediately after the match about your ankle injury is not as bad as it first looks.
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, I don't know how bad it is. Just normally if it's something like severe, a serious ankle injury, you can't put weight on your foot. Ankles, you normally feel a bit worse 20 or 30 minutes after you stop moving around on them.

It just a little bit stiff just now. It's okay. I don't think I've done too much damage.

Q. Have you done any treatment on it since the match?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah. Well, just icing. There's not a whole lot you can do apart from that just now. See in the morning how it feels when I wake up. But hopefully it will be all right.

Q. Was it swollen?
ANDY MURRAY: No, it's not too bad. It's all right. It's not too bad. Just a bit sore. I mean, I'll see how it feels when I get up in the morning. It can sometimes swell overnight. Just have to wait and see in the morning.

Q. Must have been a bit worrying when it happened.
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, well, it was. Heard a few sort of little crackles, and it was sore. It was throbbing kind of the rest of the match. I was moving fine on it, though. It was just sore. So you're thinking about it because, you know, you have a little bit of pain when you're moving around. Also when you're moving into certain positions again on the court, you don't want to, you know, do the same movement again.

But, yeah, I was moving fine towards the end of the match.

Q. You've always worn those ankle supports. Would they have been crucial?
ANDY MURRAY: I think so. I haven't seen it. We were trying to find the replay of it just now just to see exactly what happened. They didn't show it on the big screen after the match. We couldn't find it online. But we're getting it from the tournament just now to see exactly what happened.

But, yeah, the ankle supports do help in those situations. Thankfully, I mean, I haven't done that too often since I've been wearing them. But they have helped me a couple of times.

Q. A tradeoff, because some people think they might impair your mobility. I guess they save you in that situation.
ANDY MURRAY: Impair my mobility?

Q. They're a little bit extra weight to carry, flexibility.
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, pretty much every player plays with ankle taping or the ankle supports. I personally find that having the ankle support gives you more mobility than the taping. It's just you can see mine. Everyone has their taping normally under the socks. I feel like the ankle supports give me a little bit more mobility than the taping. But that's just my preference, yeah. Everyone, yeah, has their own things that they like and dislike.

Q. Can you look ahead to Sam Querrey. You haven't played in a couple years, but you have a pretty good record against him.
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, haven't played for quite a while. He's obviously a dangerous player. Big serve. Goes for it. Obviously had a big win a couple slams ago against Novak in the third round.

I'm aware of that, and I'll be ready.

Q. Do you feel it was pretty clinical tonight, apart from the fall?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I did pretty good tonight. It was better than the first match. I was hitting the ball a bit cleaner. I was hitting through the court more. More winners. I was able to get myself up to net more. I served way better, too. That helps you and allows you to dictate more points.

Second serve was harder than the other night, than the other day. Yeah, most things were better tonight. But still think I can improve.

Q. Did you see any of Dan's match?
ANDY MURRAY: I saw quite a lot of it. When we came in from practice it was 6-3. When I went on the court, he had just broken in the fourth. Yeah, he did great. I mean, he was moving really well, fighting really hard. He had to do a lot of defending out there from the bits that I saw. But he was moving well. Yeah, putting a lot of effort in out there.

It's obviously a great win. Cilic, once he sort of gets through a few rounds, tends to play better and better. After getting through the first round in the first one with Janowicz, getting the first one today, it was a tough one for Dan to come back.

It was a great win for him. Biggest of his career, I'd imagine.

Q. Every Grand Slam we talk about British players doing well. Is there a wider cause for that other than just hard work and good players?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I don't know. Dan's obviously someone that for a long time has been talked about as having a lot of potential. Exactly why it's happening for him now, he'd be the best person to ask. But I know he has a good team around him now. All of the times I've spent around him at Davis Cup and practice sessions, he has practiced extremely well. He works hard in practice. He's naturally a very good athlete, as well.

People mature at different ages, find what's important for them at different ages, too. I think now he's, you know, pretty focused on his tennis. With the right people around him, he's doing really well.

Really happy for him 'cause he's a nice, nice guy. He's talented. He does work hard. He competes well. Once you get him on the match court, he competes really hard. He deserves it.

Q. What kind of influence did Darren Cahill have during your career?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, I didn't spend loads of time with Darren. I spent time with him, it was just before I started working with Ivan. I was still working with Dani Vallverdu at the time. He was helping us out then for a few months. I chatted to him a bit about potential coaches. Yeah, Ivan was one of the names that he came up with. I have him to thank a bit for that working out the first time.

I spent a lot of time with him over the years. He's obviously very, very experienced. Worked with a number of different players.

Q. What did you make of Rublev? What do you think are his strengths?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, he's a very clean ball-striker. He goes for it, especially on the forehand side. I don't think he served well tonight. I think he can serve better than that. I think he served a pretty low percentage of first serves. That didn't help him.

But, yeah, I think in comparison with some of the guys that are his age, physically he's going to get stronger. I still think he's got some developing to do there. When he does, I think he'll do really well because he hits a big ball. He's a clean ball-striker. Yeah, just with a bit more experience, maybe a little bit more flair or finesse, using a little bit more changing of pace, would help him. But he's good.

Q. Will you look at Querrey's match against Djokovic at all in your preparation?
ANDY MURRAY: No. I'll watch matches on hard courts, yeah. If I'm playing a guy on grass, I'll try to watch matches of them playing on a grass court because it changes from surface to surface. So I wouldn't watch that.

Q. Do you think you've been challenged enough in these early two rounds to take him on?
ANDY MURRAY: The first round was pretty challenging. I had some tough moments in that one. I was down a break in the first two sets. It was a pretty long one in tough conditions.

I played some pretty tough matches in Doha 10 days or so ago. I think I'll be ready in a couple days.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297