Although the three-time Grand Slam champion admits he is just one serious injury away from having to stop competing, Andy Murray is still eager to continue.
Murray missed most of the previous four years due to two hip surgeries he underwent in 2018 and 2019.
Although Murray reached two tour-level finals in 2022, his run to the third round of the US Open was his joint-best Grand Slam run since Wimbledon 2017. Murray then climbed back to the top 50 in the world rankings.
While Murray concedes that physical issues could force his hand, he is not yet ready to follow in the footsteps of his adversary and fellow two-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer, who announced his retirement from the sport in September after battling a knee injury.
“If my body is in good shape and I’m still able to compete consistently, I’ll keep playing,” Murray said.
“But I can’t look so far in advance with the age I’m at and with the issues I’ve had. If I was to have a big injury, I probably wouldn’t try to come back from that.”
Murray has been training with coach Ivan Lendl in a bid to ensure he enters next month’s Australian Open in peak condition, having missed three of the last five editions of the tournament.
“I spent three weeks in Florida, getting my body right and getting some work done on my game and it went really well,” he said.
“I’m certainly in better shape than I was. A lot of work was done in the gym, trying to build up my endurance and my stamina a bit and I’m hoping that’s going to help me next year.
“I wasn’t happy with how last season went – certainly the last six months or so from a physical perspective – but my ranking still went from 125 to 50 in a year.
“I’m hoping that this year, with the work I’ve done, things will continue to improve and I’ll still be motivated to get out there and compete.”
In a quarterfinal full of gruelling rallies, this point featured almost every shot in the book 😤@DavidFerrer87 v @andy_murray#AusOpen 🔜 #AO2023 pic.twitter.com/mTmHG59G8i
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) December 20, 2022