New Delhi, Feb 22 (IANS): Andy Murray is hoping to return to French Open "one more time before he stops playing" as the Scot feels physically fit to play at the clay-court major.

The former world No. 1 has only made two appearances at Roland Garros in the last six years. He suffered a first-round defeat to Stan Wawrinka in his last appearance at the French Open in 2020.

"My plan just now is to play in Rome, Madrid and hopefully the French Open, providing my body is good. I'll do a training block after Miami on the clay, I'm going to do that in Europe somewhere for three or four weeks. I'll train, try and get my body used to the clay courts and monitor how my body is feeling," Murray was quoted by Eurosport.

"Physically, I was not good the year I played against Wawrinka. I'd like to get the opportunity to play it one more time before I stop playing. While I feel physically really good, I would like to play there again."

The 35-year-old has begun his 2023 season in strong fashion after progressing to the Australian Open third round following epic wins over Matteo Berrettini and Thanasi Kokkinakis.

"What I did in Australia gave me lots of belief in my physical state. Putting all the work I did in the off-season and continuing that after the Australian Open has really helped," he added.

In his first competitive appearance since the Australian Open, Murray produced a classic comeback victory to beat Lorenzo Sonego in the first round of the Qatar Open.

The 46-time tour-level titlist will play fourth seed German Alexander Zverev in the second round to reach his first ATP Tour quarterfinal of the season as he bids to rise up the rankings.