Andy Murray announced that he would not play Roland Garros in order to focus and prioritize the tour on grass and specifically Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam of the season.
As such, they added to the absence of Roger Federer, retired, and Rafael Nadal, who confirmed that he will not be a part of the French tournament as he is yet to recover from the injury that Iliac Peso is suffering from.
The last time Roland Garros was played without Murray, Federer and Nadal was in 1998. That year, it was the Spanish Carlos Moya who won the title, defeating his compatriot Alex Corretta 6–3, 7–5 and 6–0 in the final. 3.
The following year, it was the first invasion of the Swiss into the lands of Paris. However, the debut was not the best as he lost in the first round against Patrick Rafter in four sets.
Nadal started playing the French event only in 2004, the year he won his first Grand Slam title. From there on, Spanish participated in all editions.
Murray, for his part, had little involvement at Roland Garros in recent years. Since the semi-finals in 2017, he has participated only once; in 2020 with a first round loss to Stan Wawrinka in straight sets.
“It is not about whether I have physical problems or not. I am sure that after all the work I have done at the beginning of the year, my body will be fine. I played five sets in a row in Australia and I am very physically fit. it was good.” And I didn’t see any reason to change it now. It’s more about looking at where my game is at, seeing what’s right and what I should be prioritizing at this point in my career,” Murray commented to The Guardian weeks ago.
For now, the priority is clear and it will be at Wimbledon, a tournament he was able to win in 2013 and 2016.
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