Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer team up with Andy Murray in Team Europe for Laver Cup
Former World No. 1 Andy Murray has joined Team Europe, which includes Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, as the Brit is set to make his Laver Cup debut.
Team Europe has won every season of the Laver Cup since the inaugural edition in 2017. In 2020, the tournament was cancelled due to the covid-19 pandemic. While the other members are yet to be announced, Team Europe is captained by legendary Bjorn Borg, who is an 11-time Grand Slam winner.
"I love playing as part of a team and there is a great atmosphere and intensity to the event. I've heard lots of good things and I'm excited to be teaming up with both Roger and Rafa for Team Europe," Murray said, as per BBC Sport.
Praising Murray, Sweden's Borg said he is "extremely excited" about the two-time Wimbledon champion's involvement, adding: "He is a dedicated, ferocious, and inspirational competitor."
Federer, who is not competing in the ongoing Wimbledon, is continuing his recovery from knee surgery and has only played 19 competitive matches since the start of 2020. However, the Swiss Master is scheduled to play the Laver Cup, which will begin on Sept. 23. After that, Federer is expected to play an ATP Tour event in his home city of Basel in October.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner Federer welcomed Murray to Team Europe in style on social media.
Team Europe's opponents in the Laver Cup, Team World, will be captained by John McEnroe, with world top-15 players Felix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz, and Diego Schwartzman so far named in his side.
Murray, who won a gold medal in two consecutive Olympics (2012 and 2016), recently returned after a long injury lay-off. He underwent a hip surgery in 2019. After six long years, Murray triumphed in a match against a Top 5 player when he defeated World No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets at Stuttgart Open. The UK national then went on to beat Nick Kyrgios in straight sets to reach the final, where he lost to Matteo Berrettini in three sets.
Following that, Murray broke into the top 50 of the ATP rankings for the first time since 2018. However, he is now ranked No. 52 in the world.
In Wimbledon 2022, Murray held his nerves against Australia's James Duckworth to seal the game in four sets and enter the second round. Murray will take on World No. 26 John Isner on Wednesday at All England Club.