Pierre-Hugues Herbert upset his regular doubles partner, Nicolas Mahut, when he accepted Andy Murray’s invitation to play with him at Wimbledon, but he is not in the mood for looking back as they prepare for their first match on Thursday, against Marius Copil and Ugo Humbert.
The Frenchman’s priority on Wednesday was ensuring a minor knee problem he brought to the tournament – apparently unknown to Murray – is sufficiently rested before they begin their pursuit of the title.
“It’s good,” the talented Frenchman said. “I had a day off [on Tuesday] to recover and I have had two good nights. I have calmed down a little bit. We had a good practice session today. We played for an hour and a half and my leg is all right, although I am still a bit tired.
“And we enjoyed ourselves. Being on court with Andy was fun. I am lucky, I will take every single [opportunity] I can to get on court with him. It’s something amazing for me. I take everything with a big smile. I’m enjoying it. It’s special because it takes me into his world a little bit. It’s something I don’t really live the whole year.
“Andy attracts a lot of attention and he has taken me a little bit with him. It’s something I have to adapt to but, when you have so many things moving around you, you have to focus on playing tennis, and enjoy it. That’s what we’re going to do and see where it takes us. I think he is just happy to be back competing again and I am happy to have the chance to share a court with him.”
Murray won the Queen’s Club title with Feliciano López two Sundays ago but fell in the first round at Eastbourne when playing with Marcelo Melo and their combination never properly clicked. His third doubles partner in three weeks reckons they can find a good groove, even though they have practised only twice. “On Friday we hit well but this session was much better today,” Herbert said.
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