"It's important to feel the tennis ball" - Andy Murray in awe of his own magnificent shot during the Indian Wells 2023 1R win
Former World No. 1 Andy Murray continued his sublime form as he beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the first round of the Indian Wells Masters on March 9. After losing the first set, Murray kept his nerve as he completed a comeback to win, 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4, in just over three hours.
During his match, the Brit made a smooth return to his opponent's box, a forehand groundstroke that generated topspin, which Etcheverry failed to reach in time.
Andy Murray was impressed with his own shot as he looked around in amazement after pulling it off. The short clip was later shared on social media.
The 35-year-old posted the video on his Instagram story along with the following caption:
"It's important to feel the tennis ball."
"Another brutal match and glad I managed to get through it" - Andy Murray on his thrilling 1R win at the Indian Wells 2023
Courtesy of his win over Etcheverry at Indian Wells, Murray will take on 15th seed Pablo Carreno Busta in the second round. Speaking to the media after his match, the Brit regretted not taking his chances to finish the game off early.
"In some of the matches I managed to win this year, I felt like I was fortunate in some of them, whereas today I really had lots of chances in that third set, I wasn't getting them and was getting really frustrated. He was coming up with some big serves at times but I also felt like I made some poor decisions as well. The more chances that went by the more you think about it."
He also praised his own performance and credited himself for winning another "brutal match."
"I did really well to keep going in the end... Another brutal match and glad I managed to get through it," Murray added.
Murray has played seven deciding sets this season, out of which he has won all seven. At the 2023 Australian Open, the veteran won two consecutive thrilling five-set matches against Matteo Berrettini and Thanasi Kokkinakis in the first two rounds.
After his exit from the third round of the Australian Open, Andy Murray reached the finals of the Qatar Open, losing the title to Daniil Medvedev. In the tournament, he won all his matches after playing the maximum number of sets.