Scottish tennis superstar Sir Andy Murray will take to the court in Aberdeen later this year.
The two-time Wimbledon champion is set to be joined by brother Jamie and current British number one Dan Evans for a pre-Christmas Scotland-versus-England showdown at the city’s P&J Live arena.
The event on December 21 and 22 will be the fourth installment of the Battle of the Brits series, organised by Jamie Murray to raise cash for the NHS in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Andy and Jamie, competing in Scotland for the first time since three-time Grand Slam winner Andy played Roger Federer in Glasgow in 2017, will lead a team of their compatriots against an English team led by world number 28 Evans.
Tournament director Jamie, a seven-time Grand Slam champion in doubles and mixed doubles, said: “I am super excited to bring live tennis to Scotland.
“Andy and I have had some incredible experiences competing as part of Team GB in the Davis Cup in Scotland, but to be able to represent Scotland is such a unique opportunity for us, especially against England!
“I would love to think Andy’s and my achievements can inspire a passion for tennis in Scotland and help build a lasting legacy for the sport here.
“Bringing big tennis events to Scotland is a huge part of that – this will be an amazing two days of tennis and entertainment for all the family.”
The Battle of the Brits event at the state-of-the-art 7,000-seat venue will feature six matches – four singles rubbers and two doubles – played over the two days, with details of more players involved to be announced in the coming weeks.
Tickets go on general sale, via Ticketmaster, at 1pm today.
In 2020, three Battle of the Brits events were held, raising more than £100,000 for NHS charities.
A return to Aberdeen for the Murrays
December’s event will see the Murray brothers play tennis in Aberdeen for the first time in 15 years.
Former world number one men’s singles player Andy, 33, became the first British man in 77 years to win Wimbledon when he tasted victory at the All England Club in 2013, having won his first Slam at the US open a year earlier.
Murray, who also won singles gold at the London 2012 Olympics, went on to defend his Olympic title at Rio in 2016, winning Wimbledon for the second time in the same summer.
Meanwhile, Jamie, 35, is a former world number one in men’s doubles, having won both the Australian Open and US Open in 2016 with Bruno Soares.
In mixed doubles, he has won Wimbledon with Jelena Jankovic, Wimbledon and the US Open with Martina Hingis, and the US Open twice with Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Both brothers spearheaded Great Britain’s run to Davis Cup glory in 2015.
However, despite Andy being in the conversation for Scotland’s greatest-ever sportsman and both brothers being household names, they haven’t competed in the Granite City since the Aberdeen Cup events in 2005 and 2006.
In 2005, Andy and Jamie were part of a Scotland team who battled to victory over England in the Aberdeen Cup at a packed Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC).
Andy defeated Greg Rusedski in the final match to earn Scotland a 4½ to 2½ win.
Earlier in event, the Murrays had teamed up to beat Rusedski and David Sherwood in doubles, while Jamie and Elena Baltacha had taken another point from a mixed doubles rubber against Sherwood and Katie O’Brien.
Scotland, again led by the Murrays, triumphed 6½ to 1 the following year.
The Murrays first came to Aberdeen in 1997 to play in the under-12 Scottish Indoor Championships at Westburn Tennis Centre.
Andy also played in the under-12 singles at the North East Tennis Championships at Cults Tennis Club in the late 1990s.
