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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 14, 2017

Andy Murray

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How does it feel to be the top seed at a slam?
ANDY MURRAY: I don't feel any different really to normal, to be honest.

Q. What are your feelings coming into this tournament? Was the preparation this winter as good as you wanted?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I think it went pretty well. Doha went well. Played some good stuff, especially at the end of the event. Yeah, I mean, the off-season, I would have liked to have been a couple weeks longer. But, you know, I made sure I got enough rest. You know, I'll get hopefully a bit of time in February as well.

But, yeah, I did some good training over in Miami. There's a lot of good players over there for practice. It went well.

Q. You're playing in the middle of the afternoon on Monday when the forecast is pretty hot. Would you have preferred to have had a bit more practice time in hotter conditions?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, yeah, but there's not really much else you can do about it. I mean, obviously in Doha, the conditions were pretty cool. You're playing most of your matches in the evening. Also, if you do well here, you'll often play at least three matches in the evening, sometimes four.

So, you know, it's good practice for that. But obviously the day matches here can get, you know, brutally hot. I think maybe the Hopman Cup is probably where you get the best conditions or most similar conditions to here to start the year.

But, yeah, I'll just have to deal with it, just like all of the other players will.

Q. Have you been impressed with Dan's effort this week?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I haven't seen loads of the matches. I saw the end of his match yesterday. I saw the first set and a little bit of his match with Thiem. But obviously he turned that match around kind of after I went out for dinner.

Yeah, I mean, it's obviously a great week for a lot of Brits actually. Obviously Jo winning, as well, was great. My brother's in the final. Yeah, it will be probably, you know, the best week that Britain's had at tour level forever probably.

Q. When you practice, how much does the fact that Djokovic is normally looming in the latter stages of not just the slams, but tournaments like Doha, how much does that feature in the way you go about things?
ANDY MURRAY: In terms of the way I practice or...

Q. Tactical awareness, preparing for big matches.
ANDY MURRAY: Well, in terms of tactical awareness, I sort of study, watch video, to learn about things that I could do better or things that have worked well. Obviously, don't do so much of that on the practice court. But there's certain patterns of play that you practice that hopefully will help against certain players. Then also there's things that are extremely important to your game and what makes your game effective, you know, not just against one player, but against the whole tour.

I feel like my movement and my speed around the court is a very important part of my game. That's something that I try to work on all of the time without thinking about, you know, other players.

But, of course, there's certain things you would practice, what would help you against the top guys, for sure.

Q. Not all the players have been able to beat you lately. David Goffin was one of them in Abu Dhabi, in the exhibition there. What do you think of him and do you think he could cause one or two upsets here?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, I think he's a really, really good player, obviously. He's very quick around the court. He's made improvements most years really, last few years. But as you get closer to the top, it becomes harder and harder to do that.

So, you know, it will be an interesting year for him. He works hard. I practice with him quite a lot, as well. He's a good guy. Down-to-earth. Very quiet and relaxed.

Yeah, I hope he does well. But he's, yeah, a very, very good player.

Q. What do you make of your opponent? You played him a few years ago.
ANDY MURRAY: I don't remember loads about that match. We played on Margaret Court. I don't remember too much about that match. I saw him playing a bit at the US Open. He had a good run there a few months ago. Also had a very tight match with Wawrinka there.

You know, he's not easy. He fights very hard. He's got a great attitude. Plays predominantly from the back of the court and moves well. He doesn't give you too many free points.

But, I mean, I've only played him once. I've never practiced with him. And that match, it was a long time ago. It would have been, I don't know, 2008, '09, something like that.

Q. Roger was asked earlier if he could remember what it was like when he gained the No. 1 ranking. He said he felt that other people treated him differently. Is that something that you've experienced? Have you had any feelings like that?
ANDY MURRAY: No, not really. I don't think so. I mean, yeah, I haven't really noticed it. It kind of happened for me right at the end of the year, so I haven't been kind of on the tour much as the No. 1 player. Just one week really in Doha. So I haven't noticed it yet.

I don't know if that will come over time, if I'm able to stay there or not. But, yeah, I mean, it's only been really a few weeks around the tour with that ranking. I haven't noticed much change.

Q. Looking back 12 months now, how much what was going on at home with Kim affecting you during the tournament here?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it was a tough tournament. Yeah, obviously the situation with, you know, Kim and the baby coming was tough. Then with what happened with Nigel kind of during the event made it really kind of awkward because there was times where I was thinking, like, you know, I want to go home. But then also my father-in-law was here and in hospital.

It was, like, I want to be at home for the birth, but then I'm not just going to sort of leave whilst my father-in-law is also in hospital.

Yeah, it was tough, and certainly not a position I would want to put myself in again, or my wife, or any of my family really.

Q. How close did you come to withdrawing before you lost?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, a few times. I mean, I don't know how to say how close. But, yeah, it was certainly something that was talked about a lot, especially the second week of the event.

Q. Just get your reaction to Michael Downey resigning. Were you surprised to hear the news?
ANDY MURRAY: No, I wasn't really surprised. I think everyone kind of thought that's always what was going to happen there. It's disappointing really, because it's just another change for British tennis. Someone new will come in with a different direction for another three, four years, then it will change again.

I think for a system that's -- maybe everyone would say that's not really worked for quite a long time, for change to happen, you need someone or a team in there that's going to be in it for the long haul and not just a few years.

So I really hope the next appointment is something long-term. You can't expect results, obviously, immediately. I don't think there should be loads of pressure on that person to get stuff done straightaway. But, yeah, I'd like to see a long-term appointment so that there's actually, you know, a chance for change to happen, but then stick. I think if you just do three years, then another three years, just keep switching all the time, it's not good for anyone.

Q. In that you think it wasn't going to be for the long haul?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, in terms of him moving back to Canada. I don't think many people expected it to go longer than the term that he was signed up for.

But, yeah, I mean, I just hope that we get a long-term replacement. Don't want it to be just a few years.

Q. Roger and Novak used to say that once you've reached the No. 1, you have to work double as hard to stay there. Do you see it like this?
ANDY MURRAY: I hope not (laughter). I hope not.

Well, yeah, I mean, I do think it is a mindset thing, because I think it could be quite easy that once you get to No. 1 that you think, Well, actually, I just need to keep doing what I doing.

The reality is, in sport, that things obviously keep moving on, the game will get better, I'll obviously get older, the young guys will continue to improve, and also Novak and Roger and Stan and Rafa and all the guys at the top are still going to be wanting to get there. So that's why having someone like Ivan on my team who has been in that position before and knows what that's like has been important. I need to continue to improve. I for sure need to keep working hard.

I don't think necessarily working harder than I have in the past, but just having the mindset I need to keep getting better and try to improve my game. Any weaknesses that are in my game, to try to get rid of them.

So, yeah, that's how I feel about it.

Q. Your record here is really good. You haven't actually won the thing. Do you feel like you're in a really good position right now to go one step further?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, look, I obviously feel pretty confident after the way that last season finished. I do love it here. I love the conditions. I have played really well here over the years, and just haven't managed to obviously get over the final hurdle.

But, yeah, I think I'm in a decent position, for sure, to do it. I think I have a chance to win here. Obviously nothing's guaranteed. But, yeah, why not? I'm playing well. Practice has been good. I feel healthy. I'll give it a good shot.

Q. Any other players called you Sir yet, Andy?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, yeah, but not genuinely, I don't think (smiling).

Q. The host broadcaster is going to refer to you as Sir Andy. How does that make you feel?
ANDY MURRAY: I'm more than happy just being Andy. That's enough for me. Yeah, if they call me Andy, that's cool, I'd be happy with that (smiling).

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