"Unbelievably shy" Andy Murray recalls the time he had his dad help him warm up at his first Challenger event
Former World No. 1 Andy Murray recently reflected on the memories of his first Challenger event.
Murray's clay-court comeback continued on Friday as he defeated Luca Van Assche 6-2, 7-6(6) to advance to the Aix-en-Provence Challenger semi-finals. Following a shaky start to the clay season, the Scot will face Harold Mayot next as he looks to rebuild his confidence ahead of Roland Garros.
Andy Murray sat down for an interview with ATP after his quarterfinal match and recalled his first Challenger event, which took place in Manchester. He stated that he had his father, William Murray, as his coach, and that because he was "unbelievably shy," he did not ask anyone to warm up with him. Instead, Murray requested that his father throw balls at him before his match.
"My first memories of playing on the Challenger tour were in Manchester. I played the grass court challenger there, and I had my dad there as my tennis coach," Murray said.
"He is not a tennis player or a coach, but he was there with me. I remember being unbelievably shy and didn't ask anyone to warm up with me before my match, so I had my dad throwing balls to me out of a shopping bag," the Scot added.
The three-time Grand Slam champion went on to talk about his performances at the event, where he bowed out in the quarterfinals.
"I ended up actually getting a couple of good wins there against Wesley Moodie, who was a very good grass court player, and Neville Godwin before losing the quarterfinals to an Australian player called Luke Bourgeois. But yeah, they were my first memories of playing on the Challenger Tour," Murray said.
🥇A launching pad to greatness 🏆🥇
@andy_murray takes a stroll down Challenger memory lane 🤔
#ATPChallenger https://t.co/oYDuxC728A
How has Andy Murray fared so far in 2023?
Andy Murray's 2023 season has been a mixed bag. He began his season with an early exit at the Adelaide International before being eliminated in the third round of the Australian Open by Roberto Bautista Agut.
This was followed by an impressive run to the finals of the Qatar Open, where his title hopes were dashed by former World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev. He then competed in the Indian Wells Masters and the Miami Open, where he lost in the third and first rounds, respectively.
The Brit then participated in the 2023 Monte Carlo Masters, but his run was cut short in the round of 64 by Alex de Minaur. His most recent appearance before the Challenger event in France was at the ongoing Madrid Open, where he was eliminated in the first round by Andrea Vavassori in straight sets.