NEW world No 6 Andy Murray believes he now has the psychological edge over his rivals in his bid to continue his rise up the ATP Tour rankings after his memorable win over Novak Djokovic in the Cincinnati Masters.
The Scot will head to the Olympics and then the US Open in the form of his life and bookmakers Ladbrokes regard him as a serious contender in both of this month's events, slashing his odds to 9-1 and 8-1 respectively.
The Scot beat world No 3 D
jokovic 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7/5) on Sunday to clinch his first title at the elite Masters Series level. It was the second time Murray had beaten Djokovic in two weeks after the British No 1 defeated the Serb in the quarter-finals of the Toronto Masters.
The win also meant Murray rose three places to sixth position in the rankings, his highest-ever position.
Murray had failed to beat Djokovic in the previous three meetings between the pair, but he now believes his win in Cincinnati means he has nothing to fear from any of his rivals in the top 10.
"Both of us were in pretty good shape for these matches but I had the mental belief that I could win and once you win against someone for the first time you have the feeling that you can do it again and again," said Murray.
"Winning a Masters series event is tough and it will be hard to follow that up, but it gives you a lot of confidence knowing you can do it."
"I feel absolutely fine both physically and mentally. I'm not fatigued at all. I have just got to try and store that over the next few days."
The full article contains 302 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
