Murray: I Definitely Believe I Can Get To No. 1

At the halfway point of the 2016 season, it appeared as if the battle for year-end No. 1 was already decided. Novak Djokovic, who had sat atop the Emirates ATP Rankings in four of the past five years come November, opened a hefty lead over Andy Murray following his maiden title at Roland Garros.

But Murray has not gone down without a fight, and the World No. 2 finds himself in hot pursuit of his longtime rival following back-to-back titles in Beijing and Shanghai. Sunday’s Shanghai Rolex Masters champion is now less than 1,000 points behind Djokovic for the top spot in the Emirates ATP Race To London, having surged to a total of 9,685.

The Scot is confident he can overtake the Serbian and he knows that while it won’t be easy, this is his best opportunity.

“I have a chance now,” Murray said following his 7-6(1), 6-1 victory over Roberto Bautista Agut. “I’m not suggesting I have no chance of getting to No. 1. I’m still aware of how difficult it is going to be to get there. But I believe I can get there. I definitely believe I can get there. These last few months have proved that to me.

“I’ll give it my best shot to do it, because I may never get another chance. I may never get another chance to be No. 1, so I’ll give it my best shot to do that while I have the opportunity.”

At 29, Murray is attempting to become the oldest player to ascend to World No. 1 for the first time since John Newcombe at 30 years, 11 months in June 1974. He will conclude his 2016 ATP World Tour campaign with a trip to the 500 event in Vienna and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament in Paris, followed by an eighth appearance at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. The top spot could be on the line at The O2 in London from 13-20 November.

“I still have to win three more tournaments. That’s not an easy thing to do. I have never had success like I have had the last few months in my career, so to keep that going, I’m aware it’s going to be a difficult thing to do. I need to keep myself motivated and be smart with my schedule and my time off, as well.”

With Djokovic taking time off before returning for the BNP Paribas Masters, Murray will look to pick up critical points at the Erste Bank Open, which begins one week from Monday. He previously lifted the Vienna trophy in 2014.

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