Andy Murray hinted he was heading into the "last few months" of his tennis career after battling from a set down to beat Denis Shapovalov in Dubai to secure his second win of 2024.
The three-time grand slam champion has been forced to fend off retirement talk following a string of first-round defeats and looked set for another early exit when Shapovalov, a former top 10 player, took the opening set.
Murray produced a trademark gutsy display to edge a second-set tie-breaker before keeping his composure to break twice in the decider and secure a 4-6 7-6 (5) 6-3 win after two hours and 33 minutes.
Victory saw Murray become only the fifth man in the Open Era to claim 500 tour-level wins on a hard court and he will face either fifth seed Ugo Humbert or wild card Gael Monfils in the second round.
However, rather than his match-up against one of the two Frenchman, it was the 36-year-old Scot's longer-term future which was again a hot topic following his win.
"People read a lot into what I say on the court sometimes and it's not always rational," Murray said.
"I obviously still love competing and still love the game, but it obviously gets harder and harder the older you get to compete with the young guys and keep your body fit and fresh.
"Not easy, I probably don't have too long left, but I'll do as best as I can these last few months."