Murray Comes Back to Take the Challenger Title in Aix-en-Provence

Thompson, Grant

First clay-court victory for the Scot since 2016

To win Sunday’s ATP Challenger Tour 175 match in Aix-en-Provence, Andy Murray overcame a sluggish start and World No. 17 Tommy Paul.

The Scot managed to rally to a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 triumph over first seed Paul at the Open Aix Provence Credit Agricole in front of a raucous arena in southern France.

“The past year and a half, or 18 months, have been a little difficult for my game. However, [my team] has been there for me, encouraging me and helping me improve, Murray remarked at the award presentation. “We continue from here.”

In order to win his third Challenger title and first since the Binghamton Challenger in 2005, Murray defeated World No. 17 Paul on Sunday, earning him his third Top-20 victory of the year.

The supporters that showed up this week [were] the most significant aspect of this week, according to Murray. “The atmosphere was fantastic from the opening match all the way through. You folks showed up even before the competition began, which is hugely significant for the success of these events.

“You were here observing and supporting [during the practice sessions]. The players value it greatly, but this event also values it greatly.

Murray, a three-time major winner, won in Aix-en-Provence, giving him his first clay-court triumph at any level since winning the Rome ATP Masters 1000 competition in 2016. Murray’s victory on Sunday is his first triumph of any kind since winning the ATP 250 competition in Antwerp in 2019. Murray’s performance in France helped him move up the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings to No. 42.

In contrast to Paul, who won 47% of his second-serve points, the former World No. 1 won 68% of them. Murray had nine break points during the game, and he used four of them to win after one hour and 55 minutes.