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Critics suggest wildcards are better suited to up-and-coming
players but Briton Murray, a three-times Grand Slam champion and
former world number one who had hip surgeries in 2018 and 2019,
feels otherwise.
"After what I've gone through the last three, four years and
what I've achieved for the game beforehand, I don't feel like I
need to justify the reasons for why I should get wildcards,"
Murray, 34, told reporters.
Among the other wildcard recipients for the hardcourt event at
Indian Wells are British teenager and U.S. Open champion Emma
Raducanu and 38-year-old Belgian Kim Clijsters, a former women's
world number one and four-times Grand Slam winner.
Murray, who is far from the tournament-winning form he enjoyed
during the mid-2010s, has fallen to 121st in the world rankings.
The twice Olympic champion said he is grateful to have the
opportunity to compete as a wildcard.
"I'd rather get in by right, obviously, but then I could also
argue that for three years I was out injured when I would have
rightfully been entered into all of these tournaments," Murray
said.
"I would've been ranked at the top of the game and would've been
getting into all of these tournaments so (other) players would
have obviously had the opportunity to take that spot for the
last three seasons or whatever."
Murray, whose best result at the ATP Masters 1000 event is a
runner-up finish in 2009, will play 51st-ranked Frenchman Adrian
Mannarino in his opening match at Indian Wells.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto, editing by Ed Osmond)
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