Andy Murray, the world No 1, returns to the Barcelona clay courts that launched his career this week as he puts in some overtime before the French Open. Murray, who played and lost his first professional match as a 17-year-old at the tournament in 2005, took a late entry into the Barcelona Open after an early defeat to Spain’s Albert Ramos-Viñolas at the Monte Carlo Masters last week. While giving him some crucial match time on a surface he has grown to love, it also offers the 29-year-old the chance to consolidate his position at the top of the ATP rankings. Murray accumulated plenty of ranking points during last season’s clay-court swing, winning the Rome Masters and reaching the French Open final, where he lost…

Source: The Times April 25, 2017 10:59 UTC