Sir Andy Murray ends 2016 with victory over Milos Raonic
World number one Sir Andy Murray ended 2016 with a win over Milos Raonic at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship.
The 29-year-old, knighted in the New Year Honours list, beat Canada’s Raonic 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to take third place at the exhibition event in Abu Dhabi.
The Briton started well, breaking Raonic in his first two service games as he took the opening set.
He led 5-3 in the second but Raonic staged a mini fightback before Murray took the tie-break.
The Scot said: “It was good to finish the year with a win. It was a good match to work on returns as Milos has a strong serve.
“I still feel like Andy Murray – that feels more normal – but I am happy with the knighthood and it is a nice way to start the new year.”
In Friday’s semi-finals, Murray lost to Belgium’s David Goffin for the first time in six meetings.
Elsewhere, Laura Robson was beaten in the first round of qualifying for the ASB Classic in Auckland, losing in three sets to Tereza Martincova of the Czech Republic.
The Briton, now ranked 222nd in the world, lost 6-3 5-7 7-6 (10-8) to an opponent ranked 59 places above her.