Friday 1 November 2019 16:26, UK
Andy Murray made a successful return to competitive tennis with a 6-3 6-4 victory over James Duckworth at the Brisbane International tournament.
Murray ended his season early last year after suffering pain in his hip following surgery earlier in 2018 that ruled him out of three of the year's four Grand Slam events.
The 31-year-old, whose ranking has dropped to 240 and is unseeded in Brisbane, had earlier said he was still feeling pain in his hip but was in a "better place" than he was 12 months ago.
"I was a bit nervous but as the match went on I thought I moved well," said Murray, who won the tournament at both his previous appearances in 2012 and 2013.
"It's not easy to sort of sum up in one sentence or one answer, it's been really hard; 18 months, a lot of ups and downs, it's been tricky to just get back on the court competing again.
"So I'm happy I'm back out here again, I want to try and enjoy it as much as I can and just try and enjoy playing tennis as long as I can. I don't know how much longer it's going to last but we'll see."
It was in Brisbane last January when Murray decided that he would have to undergo surgery for a problem that first surfaced in the summer of 2017.
The two-time Wimbledon champion managed just half a dozen tournaments in 2018 and spent several periods during the last six months in Philadelphia working with a reconditioning specialist.
As an unseeded player in Brisbane he has a tough draw and now faces Russian fourth seed Daniil Medvedev - ranked No 16 in the world - in round two.
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