Andy Murray lifted the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi following Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from the tournament. It appears the Serb came down with an illness and was forced to surrender the title to Murray.

The British No. 1 won the $250,000 prize for first place, but was disappointed he didn’t want to

“Unfortunately I am not to be able to play in the final in Abu Dhabi tonight,” Djokovic announced. “I’ve been sick today with a fever and I’m not fit to play. I said after my match last night, the crowds here have shown their love of tennis again this year and always inspire me to play my best, so I am hugely disappointed not to be able to play for them.”I’ve had another great weekend in Abu Dhabi, meeting fans and coaching young players, and played some great tennis against the best players in the world.

“I love being a part of this tournament and I’m really disappointed not be able to take my chance of winning the trophy here again. Congratulations to Andy. It’s a shame I couldn’t play him today, but I’m sure we will meet again soon.”

While he did not get to take part in the final, Murray did begin his season with two consecutive victories over Feliciano Lopez and then a thrashing of Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-0.

“It’s always nice to win and it gives that little bit of extra confidence,” the Scot commented. “I was really happy with the way I was playing in the matches that I did play so it’s a great start to the year. It would have been perfect to play today, especially against Novak, but of course it’s not been possible due to his illness so I’ll celebrate the victory.”

While Nadal only won two games against Murray on Friday, he was able to defeat Stan Wawrinka 7-6(1), 6-3 to secure third place at the event.

“I did make some mistakes, but in general I feel I played a positive match against another tough opponent,” Nadal explained. “So it is good to have this test and for me it is great to have an opportunity to play these two matches in Abu Dhabi and I thank the organizers for giving me this chance.

“The work I came to do here I believe is done, and I really hope these two matches will help me moving forward.”