Murray Wins Close Exhibition Match

British number 1 Andy Murray confirmed his fitness for Wimbledon by coming through a tough grass court workout against the Serbian Janko Tipsarevic on Tuesday afternoon. Murray won the opening match of The Boodles Challenge at the Stoke Park Club in Buckinghamshire 6-3, 5-7, 12-10 as he made his return to action after pulling out of the Artois Championship last week because of a thumb injury. A championship tiebreak decided the match which saw both players picking themselves up off the grass on several occasions. World number 40 Tipsarevic, who was close to putting out Roger Federer in the Australian Open this year, was certainly a challenge for the Scot and it proved a great test of Murray's fitness ahead of Wimbledon next week. Andy Murray commented: “It felt good and it was a very interesting match seeing as I had not hit a ball for four days since I pulled out of Queen's. I enjoyed it thoroughly and even though I spent half my time face down I love playing on the grass. The court was playing really well today and it's great preparation for Wimbledon. I love everything about coming back to The Boodles. The people, the place, everything is second to none and I’ll definitely be back next year." In the second match of the day, former Wimbledon finalist David Nalbandian (ARG) defeated American Robby Ginepri in a close fought match coming through 3-6, 7-6 and 10-7 in the day's second championship tiebreak. David Nalbandian commented: “I found it very tough out there today but felt there was some great tennis on show. Coming straight from playing on the clay court circuit it certainly takes a bit of getting used to but it's great to be here again - that's the reason it's my sixth year at The Boodles. I'm sure over the week I'll go from strength to strength on the grass and really look forward to my next match.” In the final match of the day, French Open quarter-finalist Ernests Gulbis (LAT) defeated Spain's Feliciano Lopez 7-6, 6-4.
Results from Tuesday 17th June:

A. Murray (GBR) v J. Tipsarevic (SRB), 6-3, 5-7, 12-10
D. Nalbandian (ARG) v R. Ginepri (USA), 3-6, 7-6, 10-7
F. Lopez (ESP) v E. Gulbis (LAT), 6-7, 4-6

The tournament, which is created and hosted by boutique international sports management and marketing company, ACE Group, is now in its seventh year and sponsors at this year’s event include title sponsor Boodles, Fortnum & Mason, Patek Philippe, The Financial Times, Chubb Insurance, and Bentley Motors. Tickets are available by calling 020 7384 4877 or visit www.theboodles.com.