Andy Murray made a successful return to the court as he picked up an opening win in Bordeaux.
Playing on his 37th birthday and in his first match since suffering an ankle injury at the Miami Open in March, Murray was 7-5 2-0 up on world number 219 Kyrian Jacquet when the Frenchman retired due to injury.
There were initially fears that Murray could miss Wimbledon this summer as a result of damaging tendons in his left ankle, but he has made a swift recovery, enabling him to feature in the clay-swing in what is expected to be the final few months of his career.
Murray showed no signs of being impacted by any fitness concerns against Jacquet, and he will now face another Frenchman in Gregoire Barrere in the last-16 of the Challenger event on Thursday.
The Briton’s serve was not broken, as he held to love to seal the opening set in 51 minutes, and there was an early break in the second before his opponent retired.
Murray will be keen to get as many matches under his belt as possible this week before turning his attention to the French Open, ahead of what is set to be his final appearance at Roland Garros and his first since losing in the first round to Stan Wawrinka in 2020. The second grand slam of the year gets underway on May 26.
British number two Dan Evans, also competing in Bordeaux in a bid to find some form after a tough few months, beat Frenchman Hugo Grenier 6-4 6-4.
