'Confident' Andreescu shakes off doubt in latest return from injury in Miami
8th seed, who has bye into 2nd round, says main goal is to be happy on court
Former U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu said she was trying to dispel any doubt about herself as she prepared to make another return from injury this week at the Miami Open.
"There is some doubt always in the back of my head but I am trying my best to get rid of that. It's not easy as a process but I am working a lot on that," said the Canadian, who, as the eighth seed, has a bye into the second round of the two-week Miami tournament.
"Just feeling good out there, I think that's that main thing that's going to help me get rid of that."
Andreescu, who suffered a torn meniscus in her left knee in October 2019, returned to action after a 15-month injury layoff at last month's Australian Open but her comeback ended abruptly when she fell to Taiwan's Hsieh Su-wei in the second round.
The 20-year-old followed her early exit from the year's first Grand Slam with a semifinal run at a follow-up event in Melbourne before withdrawing from tournaments in Adelaide, Doha and Dubai with a leg issue.
"I am a professional athlete that's wearing and tearing her body so it's normal to have pains here and there and it's not like I am the only one that's retiring from tournaments and stuff like that," Andreescu said on Tuesday.
"There's so many players that do the same. But I am feeling confident going into the tournament and trying always my hardest."
But Andreescu suffered a knee injury in the 2019 season-ending WTA Finals in Shenzhen and while that campaign brought with it sky-high expectations, she is now taking to the court with a different mindset.
"I am the type of person to always set high expectations for myself," said Andreescu. "But now my main goal is to just be happy out there and just enjoy myself as much as I can.
"Even if my tennis feels off I just want to take it as something I can push through and feel fulfilled after the match."
Murray out with groin injury
Former champion Andy Murray has pulled out of the Miami Open due to a groin injury, the ATP Tour confirmed on Tuesday.
Murray is ranked 119th in the world after long injury lay-offs due to hip surgery but the former world number one had received a wild card for the Masters 1000 tournament after winning the title in 2009 and 2013.
The 33-year-old arrived in Miami last week and was preparing for the tournament but started developing pain on Friday and has not practiced since.
"When I got out of bed I struggled quite a bit to walk. I have no idea what I did, it's one of those freak things. Each day it has gotten progressively better, but it's not enough."
Murray's withdrawal is the latest blow to the tournament after Australian Open champion and world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem also decided to miss the event, which started with qualifiers on Monday.
Serena Williams also said she would not compete as the 23-times Grand Slam champion is recovering from oral surgery.
