• ATP Tour

Murray battles illness to overcome Berrer

ESPN staff
February 28, 2012
Murray laboured on his first competitive outing since the Australian Open © Getty Images
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Andy Murray was forced to dig deep on his competitive return in the Dubai Duty Free Championship after admitting to feeling ill on court against Michael Berrer.

The world No. 4, who has not played since losing to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, laboured to a 6-3 4-6 6-4 victory against the German qualifier to reach the second round.

Murray, third seed in Dubai behind Djokovic and Roger Federer, was up a set and a break before Berrer mounted a brief comeback to level the match at a set apiece.

The Scot recovered enough composure to wrap up victory in the third, but admitted to feeling sub-par on his return to action after making a bright start.

"At the start of the match I didn't feel great," said Murray. "[I] felt like I wanted to vomit. I don't know if I had drunk too much or overhydrated.

"It was one of those strange sets. It was quite a frustrating match because I was up a break twice in the second set, and each time I think gave it straight back. I could have made it a little bit easier for myself if I played a bit better."

Up next for Murray is Marco Chiudinelli after he fought his way into round two with a 6-4 5-7 6-4 win over Nikolay Davydenko.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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