ANDY MURRAY hopes the rain continues to play havoc at the Western & Southern Open so he can enjoy an extended rest following his Olympic gold medal win.
The 29-year-old Scot, who won his second Wimbledon title in July, beat Juan Martin del Potro over four sets in a thrilling Rio 2016 final on Sunday night, and just 48 hours later he was on a practice court in Cincinnati.
After receiving a bye, world No.2 Murray will face either Ivo Karlovic or Juan Monaco in the second round, with a potential showdown against Kevin Anderson or Richard Gasquet in the last 16.
Croatia's Karlovic and Monaco of Argentina must first complete a match which was one of many to fall foul of inclement weather.
Murray is keen for the present unplayable conditions to remain, giving him extra time to focus on recovering from his exertions in Brazil.
He said: "The match against Juan Martin was so up and down, so emotional, physical. It was a really, really hard match, one of the hardest matches I've played.
"Doing the long trip straight afterwards was tough. Hopefully it will be able to rain in the next few days."
Neither world No.1 Novak Djokovic nor last year's winner Roger Federer is competing in Cincinnati, where Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka is the second seed in a field headed by Murray.
The Scot shared a private jet to the United States with third seed Rafael Nadal, the Cincinnati Masters champion three years ago.
Del Potro, meanwhile, has been given a wild card into the US Open.
The Argentinian, champion at Flushing Meadows in 2009, is ranked down at 141 as he battles his way back from a left wrist problem that required three operations.
Del Potro's ranking will not be helped by his spectacular run in Rio, where he defeated Djokovic and Nadal before losing to Murray in the gold medal match, because no points were awarded.
But he will not need to go through qualifying after the United States Tennis Association announced he was one of seven men to be given wild cards.
Britain's Laura Robson, who like Del Potro was sidelined for the better part of two years by a wrist injury, has been awarded a place in qualifying.
The 22-year-old, who reached the fourth round of the US Open in 2012, is currently ranked 283rd. She has struggled since her comeback but made a breakthrough by winning a small tournament in the US on Sunday.
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