ANDY MURRAY returned to the ATP Tour on Monday after last competing at Wimbledon, reaching the second round of the Cincinnati Masters with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Frenchman Richard Gasquet.

The three-time Grand Slam champion, who owns two titles here and played the 2016 final, has been struggling over the summer with a groin strain.

Murray, with 15 aces among his 38 winners, was pleased with his effort.

“I thought I did well. I moved pretty well for my first singles match in a while on hard courts,” he said.

“I was certainly, a little bit more confident in my movement than when I played him a couple of years ago 2019.

“He uses all the angles on the court really well and makes you move a lot. I served well and got a lot of free points on my serve.

“I thought I was taking control of the rallies when I had the opportunities so it was a good match.”

Wild card Murray and Gasquet, a longtime rival whose 53rd ranking meant he had to qualify, first played 15 years ago.

The Scot, who reached the Wimbledon third round, leads their series 9-4. They last met in 2019 here.

Murray hammered 14 aces and broke three times in the win lasting just under two hours. After three games that lasted for a total of 20 minutes to start, Murray grabbed a 5-3 lead, which he lost a game later before re-breaking to win the first set 6-4.

Gasquet was broken in the final game of the match after saving a match point before Murray prevailed.

Also, birthday boy Jannik Sinner turned 20 on a rain-interrupted day and celebrated with a win.

The young gun was joined in the second round after a delayed start by 34-year-old Italian compatriot Fabio Fognini.

Sinner erased memories of a disheartening first-round loss a week ago in Toronto when he went down in his opening match to Australian qualifier James Duckworth.

The youngster came good in Cincinnati as he defeated Argentine Federico Delbonis 6-2, 7-5. (SD-Agencies)