Dan Evans keen to give Andy Murray Olympic swansong

The Birmingham-born star and the two-time Wimbledon champion will chase the Paris podium in men’s doubles.

The pair will start their Olympic campaign against Japanese pair Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori with Murray already having confirmed that this will be his last-ever tournament.

“There’s nothing more that I want than to get a medal for him and myself,” said Evans.

“We both agreed at the start of the week when Leon (Smith) asked us. We are going to prioritise doubles, I had to take some time out after Wimbledon with my knee.

“It’s really positive that we agreed on that and we can work together on giving ourselves the best chance. I don’t see any reason why we can’t do something special.

“I don’t think Andy wants it to be a farewell, I think he wants to win a medal and he’ll say goodbye in his own way. He’s here to do a job and get a medal.

“He was out there the other day doing sprints at the end of our session. Knowing Andy as I do, he’s as competitive as ever, working as hard as ever.”

Evans has his own singles ambitions, and he will take on Tunisian Moez Echargui in the first round at Roland Garros, the vaunted venue that hosts the French Open each year.

Murray is one of the most successful tennis players in Olympic history and it has been a match made in heaven between him and the Games since Beijing 2008.

He beat Roger Federer to strike singles gold at London 2012 before becoming the first tennis player to win two Olympic singles titles by retaining his crown at Rio 2016.

“The Olympics feels totally different, and I personally love it," said Murray. "Some of the tennis players feel the same as me, some of them don’t. I love being around all of the athletes and representing my country.

“When you’re on your own, on the tour, it is at times a little bit lonely. Maybe it’s more stressful in some ways. I don’t know the exact reason. I just know when I’m here it feels different, it feels more important."

Summing up Murray’s impact on the sport, Evans said: “There’s few words you can say about how big an impact he has had, not just on tennis, but on sport. He’s one of the leading lights to have ever worn a Team GB kit."

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