Andy Murray has played down concerns over his fitness ahead of the Monte Carlo Masters.
The world number one has been out of action for five weeks with an elbow injury and was unable to serve at full speed during his first match back as he was beaten by Roger Federer in an exhibition.
Murray has a bye in the first round of the tournament so will not be in action until Wednesday, by which time he is hopeful of having returned to full fitness.
"When I had the injury, I had to take two-and-a-half weeks off serving. When I started serving again, I had to progress very slowly, but in the last couple of days I've been serving pretty much close to the speed that I would normally," he told The Independent.
"My elbow has reacted well, so I feel good about it. I will have had pretty much five days before my match of serving at the right speed, so I think it will be fine.
"I don't feel more tired than usual. I'm training really well. I've got lots of tournaments coming up, so I'm looking forward to it. Obviously I have some work to do to push myself back up in the rankings again this year. That starts this week."
Murray will face either Gilles Muller or Tommy Robredo in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters.
Barney Corkhill
