The former No.1 Andy Murray recorded his first title since 2019 as he won ATP Challenger Tour 175 event in Aix-en-Provence on May 7. The Scottish Tennis veteran beat top-seeded No.17 Tommy Paul 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 to end his wait for the title. Murray also secured took a big jump in ATP rankings from No.52 to No.42, his highest in the last five years.
The three-time Grand Slam champion was knocked out of ATP Madrid Open in the first round on April 27. He entered the Challenger tour in the Round of 32 and won four matches to set the final against Tommy Paul. Murray won nine break points in the match and 68 percent of his second serve points in Province.
This was Murray's third Challenger title and first since the Binghamton Challenger in 2005, at the age of 18. This 17-year gap is the longest between two Challenger titles by any player. Murray's last title triumph was in 2019 when he won ATP 250 event in Antwerp and his first title on a clay court since his triumph in Rome ATP Masters 1000 event in 2016.
Murray also achieved his highest ATP rankings in the last five years as he jumped to No.42 from No.52. Murray was ranked No.1 for 41 weeks and was in top-ten from July 2008 to October 2017. He ranked No.39 in May 2018 after his infamous hip surgery in January 2018. Murray returned to Tennis in June 2018 at No.156 and has been remarkable to reach No.42 since then.
Murray praised his team for supporting him during his troubles with injuries and also thanked fans to show him big support in France during the tournament.
“This last year, 18 months has been a bit of a struggle with my game. But [my team] have been there supporting me and working with me to try and get better. We keep going from here. The most important part of this week [was] the fans who came out to support. The atmosphere from the very first match right to the end was incredible. It’s so important for these tournaments to have the support of the local community and you guys came out even before the tournament started," Murray said during the Trophy presentation.
