Tuesday 16th February 2010 - 15:42:20
Jean-Francois Caujolle, director of the Marseille Open, has denied that he called for Andy Murray to be suspended for the ATP Tour after pulling out of the event.
Murray was set to return to the court this week as the top seed at the French event but pulled out to give himself more time to recover from the Australian Open.
The Scot reached to the final where he was soundly beaten by world number one Roger Federer, he did however move up to number three in the rankings.
The Daily Express had quoted Caujolle as saying: "Murray did the same thing to me last year. He can't know what it is to keep his word.
"The number one seed of a tournament should have a sense of responsibility. If he does not respect his commitments, he should be suspended by the ATP."
However he denies having made such a comment and told Sky Sports News: "I never said that he should be suspended, but it's true I was really disappointed because he was my top player.
The start of the season was a busy period for Murray as he travelled to Australia earlier to join Laura Robson in the Hopman Cup in Perth.
They made it to the final but were beaten by Spain. However no playing in the opening ATP tournament of the new season in Doha cost him a place in the rankings, he was defending champion, and Juan Martin Del Potro moved up to fourth.
The British number one produced some impressive tennis on his way to his second Grand Slam final, his first coming in 2008 at the U.S. Open.
But he was not able to reproduce that form and it was a masterclass from Federer as he claimed his sixteenth Grand Slam title.
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