Andy Murray reaches first final on clay since 2016

Andy Murray booked his place in the final of the Open Aix Provence by defeating Frenchman Harold Mayot 7-5, 6-1 in the semifinals.

The Scot entered the tournament after losing to Andrea Vavassori in the first round of the Madrid Open. Murray was seeded fifth and reached the final four following wins over Gael Monfils, Laurent Lokoli, and Luca Van Assche. In the semifinals, he took on Harold Mayot and won a tightly-contested opening set 7-5. Murray dominated the second set and won it 6-1 to book his place in the final.

This was the 35-year-old's first final on clay since the 2016 French Open when he lost to Novak Djokovic.

Murray will take on top seed Tommy Paul in the final. The American also suffered an early exit at the Madrid, losing to Roman Safiullin in the second round. Paul booked his place in the final of the Open Aix Provence after defeating Belgium's David Goffin 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals.

Tommy Paul will face Andy Murray for the second time, having previously beaten him 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Stockholm Open.

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Andy Murray aims to compete for another Wimbledon title

Andy Murray - Mutua Madrid Open - Day Four

Andy Murray claimed not long back that he still had the amibition to compete for a third Wimbledon crown, something he thought was possible.

“I also have ambitions of, you know, competing for Wimbledon titles and that sort of stuff, and I know that sitting here today that probably doesn’t sound realistic, but I do believe that that’s a possibility. I obviously want to do the right thing there," the Scot said.

“The experiences I have had when I have won Wimbledon has been in 2013 when I didn’t play the French Open and won, and 2016 I had my best French Open and won Wimbledon. It didn’t have an impact necessarily. It’s impossible to say what the right thing to do is, but obviously it’s a Grand Slam. I would like the opportunity to play," Murray added.

After his final in Provence, Andy Murray is next scheduled to compete at the Italian Open. If the Scot competes, it will be his first appearance at the Masters 1000 event since 2017 when he was seeded first but suffered a 6-2, 6-4 defeat to Fabio Fognini in the second round.

Murray is yet to win a clay-court match in the 2023 ATP Tour and will be eager to get his first victory if he competes at the Italian Open.