Andy Murray (Photo : Getty Images)
Andy Murray has decided to practice in Rafael Nadal's homeland in Mallorca, attempting to acclimate himself on the red clay-surface of the Madrid Open slated to kickoff next week.
Murray started his training for his next tournament in the clay-season, and interestingly picked Nadal's home turf as the place to improve his game on clay surfaces.
The world No. 2 revealed he was invited by former world No. 1 Carlos Moya to train with him and Canada's Milos Raonic at the Palma Sports & Tennis Club in Mallorca, where Nadal is also expected to prepare for the ATP 1000 Masters in Madrid.
"I was training in Barcelona but Carlos said that he was going to be here training with Milos and that even Rafa [Nadal] might be joining us," Murray said, reports See Mallorca.
"So, with the conditions and the weather being far better here than in London, I decided to come to Palma. It has helped me adapt to the surface, clay, and also acclimatize myself for Madrid. Plus being here training with some of the top players in the world all together is great."
After finishing as runner up at the Australian Open in January and helping Great Britain move to the next round of the Davis Cup, Murray has had a rough season, suffering consecutive Round of 32 losses in Indian Wells and Miami Open against Federico Delbonis and Grigor Dimitrov, respectively. The Scot had a batter run at the Monte Carlo Masters, but was halted by Nadal in the semifinal round.
Clay-court tournaments were never Murray's specialty, with the 28-year-old only winning two of his 35 overall titles on the aforementioned surface, which he both earned last year in Munich and Madrid.
Murray is set to defend his crown at the Madrid Open although it may appear difficult for the two-time Grand Slam winner, with world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and a rejuvenated Nadal in the mix, as well as a potential appearance of Swiss Maestro Roger Federer. Apparently, Murray knows very well how tough it would be facing the other members of the Big Four.
"In terms of results, Djokovic and Nadal have been the toughest rivals in my career. Against them, I've won important matches, but I've lost too. In the last two years, Novak has been the world no. 1 without any doubt and the toughest opponent for the rest," Murray told Eurosport Italy as translated by Tennis World USA.
