Andy Murray to take on Kyle Edmund on Wednesday; British No 1 Dan Evans also wins
Wednesday 24 June 2020 10:16, UK
Andy Murray made a winning return in his first match for seven months with victory over Liam Broady in Schroders Battle of the Brits tournament.
The Scot, 33, has not played since the Davis Cup Finals in November after sustaining a bruised thigh bone, but clinched a 6-2 6-2 triumph in Roehampton.
He did not show too much rustiness in the Tim Henman Group fixture in the all-British tournament - hosted by his brother Jamie - at the National Tennis Centre.
Murray told Amazon Prime: "It was OK. I served pretty well, I thought I served well throughout the match."
Next up for Murray is a match on Wednesday against Kyle Edmund, which he insists will be a tricky encounter.
"I didn't hit the ball that well from the back of the court, had a lot of errors and the balance didn't feel great, but it was alright," the Scot added.
"Kyle played well today, he is fit and hitting a big ball so I'll be surprised if I manage to come through that one.
"I will try to rest up and hopefully improve a little bit tomorrow. If I serve like I did today and hit the ball a little bit cleaner from the back of the court I will give myself some chances, but it will be tough."
During his press conference, Murray spoke about his troublesome hip, which he feels could move a little more smoothly yet.
"The hip that I have makes everything around it more complex," he said. "It's important to make sure my abdominal work is OK and it functions properly. Physically, it wasn't perfect. These courts are the worst to move on.
"If you look at the way I am hitting the ball, I am not where I want to be. It's good to get matches and see how my hip responds to playing three days in a row. It's not the highest level but it is a good level. I'll see how I feel at the end. Maybe I'll get another match at the weekend as well. The intensity of the match is better than in practice. It's pushing myself more."
Dan Evans showed why he is British No 1 with a routine victory over Jay Clarke.
The 6-3 6-1 win for the 30-year-old showed why many are tipping him to triumph at the National Tennis Centre.
But Evans told Amazon Prime: "Andy Murray is the favourite."
He added: "It felt a bit strange to be back playing and I mistimed a few balls, but it is good to be out here and getting some matches in.
"It's obviously been a terrible time so it's good to put some tennis back on the TV for the people tuning in."
After Novak Djokovic tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, days after he hosted a number of players in the Adria Tour exhibition tournament, Evans said "everybody will take lessons from what happened" during his press conference.
"Me, first and foremost, I don't want to see anyone sick from that. I hope those guys have a speedy recovery," the 30-year-old said.
"I think it just reiterates just how important it is for the ATP, WTA, and the Grand Slams - who are going to play behind closed doors - that their protocols that have been put in place are done to the letter of the law so to speak."
British No 2 Kyle Edmund made a winning return to action with victory over James Ward.
The 25-year-old looked solid and consistent as he dispatched his compatriot 6-1 6-4 in his opening match of the round-robin tournament.
Earlier, in an upset, Liam Broady and Cameron Norrie beat Jamie Murray and Neal Skupski 3-6 7-5 11-9 after a close final-set tie-break.
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