Andy Murray has accepted wildcard entry for 2022 Australian Open

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Sneha Singh

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Published on Dec 23, 2021, 10:17 pm

Five-time finalist Andy Murray has accepted a wildcard invitation to participate in next month's Australian Open. He last participated in the tournament in 2019. Murray was beaten by Roberto Bautista Agut in the very first round. At the time, Murray believed it would be his last professional game as he revealed that he was set to undergo hip surgery.

The last time Murray walked out of Melbourne Arena, he looked heartbroken as he felt it was his last competitive match. Now, returning to the same venue after three years, to continue his pursuit to clinch a maiden Australian Open title does present a fairytale ring to it. Murray withdrew from the 2020 edition and missed the 2021 Australian Open after contracting coronavirus.

Murray's wildcard entry in AO was confirmed on Thursday via Twitter. "Five-time finalist Andy Murray is awarded a main draw wildcard," Australian Open tweeted. "Andy is renowned for his fighting spirit, passion and love of the game and I'm delighted to welcome him back to Melbourne in January," CEO Craig Tiley said. "We can't wait to see you at #AO2022," Tiley concluded.

Murray is currently ranked 134th and has been trying to enter the top 100 brackets while consistently battling with injuries. Murray did not have a successful start to 2021 but towards the end of the season, he recorded some memorable wins against Wimbledon semi-finalist Hubert Hurkacz and Jannik Sinner of Italy. He recently defeated Rafael Nadal 6-3, 7-5 in the Abu Dhabi exhibition tournament.

Murray has three Grand Slams under his name. He clinched his first Grand Slam in 2012 when he won the US Open to become the first British player to achieve the feat. A year later, he won his first Wimbledon Championship. He won his second Wimbledon title in 2016. Murray is yet to win the Australian and French Open.