Defending champion Andy Murray takes on compatriot Aljaz Bedene in the Men's singles opening round of 2017 Queen's Club, also known as Aegon Championships, in London on Tuesday.
After having a tough start to the 2017 season, Murray will look for a change in fortunes in the grass season. It will be important for the world number one to get back to his best ahead of the title defence in Wimbledon, starting 3 July.
Murray made his way to the top of ATP rankings towards the end of last year after having a stunning season, which saw him win the French Open and the Wimbledon among other titles on the tour. However, the Scot's form dipped in the new season.
The 30-year-old bowed out of the Australian Open early and managed only one title [Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships] on hard courts. He struggled on clay as well, but managed to reach the semi-final of French Open only to lose to Stanislas Wawrinka.
Queen's will thus be an important tournament for the Scot if he is to defend his title at Wimbledon successfully. Having won a record five titles at the tournament, Murray will be eager to make use of the advantage and hit peak form soon.
Having drawn in the top quarter, Murray begins campaign against British No 4 Bendene, whom he defeated at the Queen's last year in their only meeting. He starts as favourite to get a favourable result against his younger compatriot once again later today.
With a possible quarter-final meeting with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on the cards, Murray would want to dispose off his opponents in the first two rounds as early as possible. The presence of top-ranked stars, including Stanislas Wawrinka, Milos Raonic and Marin Cilic, at the Queen's means the numero uno has to battle hard to go the distance and a good run will help his confidence ahead of the upcoming big test at Wimbledon.
