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Murray to play in Abu Dhabi

Britain’s Andy Murray returns the ball to Serbia’s Janko Tipsarevic during their Mubadala World Tennis Championship match in Abu Dhabi on December 27, 2012. — AFP file

Current Wimbledon Champion and world No.4, Andy Murray, has confirmed he is ready to return to action after a long-standing back injury put a premature end to his 2013 season.

The Scot will play his first match since a Davis Cup tie appearance for Great Britain in September when he takes on world number ten Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on Day One of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship.

Murray has been following an intense programme of training and rehabilitation in Miami, Florida since undergoing minor surgery in September. He will remain in the US until flying to Abu Dhabi for an explosive weekend of tennis in the capital where he will be joined by world number one, two and three — Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and David Ferrer — as well as top ten players Stanislas Wawrinka and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Sellout crowds are expected on December 26 to witness one of the biggest stories in world sport as Murray make his long-awaited return to action. The Brit will line up against Tsonga The stakes will be high with the winner set to meet reigning Mubadala World Tennis Champion Novak Djokovic the following day.

Speaking ahead of the Championship, Murray commented: “I’ve been training and having rehab every day and will continue to do so right up until just before Christmas when I fly to Abu Dhabi. Getting back to playing competitively is the next step in my preparations for the new season, which starts for me at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship. Coming back from injury is never easy and the line-up this year is so strong but it’s exactly the test I need to see where my game is at. I’m looking forward to being part of what is always a great tournament.”

Prior to his injury 2013 was an historic season for Murray who became the first British male to win the singles event at Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. The 26-year-old also finished runner-up in his third Australian Open final, won his 27th career trophy and enjoyed a spell in the world number two spot.

This year will see all three of the tournament’s previous champions battling for glory with current and two-time champion Djokovic, two-time winner Rafael Nadal and inaugural victor Murray all in action across the weekend. The addition of a fifth/sixth place play off to the tournament schedule for 2013 means that for the first time ever in the tournament’s history, all six of the stellar line-up will play on the same day, December 27.

The unique combination of a ‘winner takes all’ prize of $250,000, the world’s best players and a championship format that takes fans on day one immediately to the equivalent of a Grand Slam quarter final guarantees explosive performances and attacking tennis on centre court.

The annual Mubadala World Tennis Championship takes place from December 26 to 28 December 2013 at the Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex, Zayed Sports City. For fans that don’t want to miss out on the tournament’s strongest line-up yet, tickets are on sale from www.ticketmaster.ae and in selected Virgin Megastores, or call 800 TM UAE (800 86 823) with prices starting from Dh50 for children and Dh100 for adults.