In an interview published by Sky Sports News, Swiss tennis ace Stanislas Wawrinka has lorded the newly crowned British world number one ranked Andy Murray by referring to him as a 'special player'.
Wawrinka is currently holding the number three rank in the world standings, but he doesn't quite feel that he is capable of reaching the same heights as his Scottish counterpart.
The two players are in the same group for the ATP World Tour finals, which is the last event of the season, taking place at the O2 arena in London on Sunday.
Murray's number one status could turn out to be short-lived, however, because if the former world number 1 Novak Djokovic wins every match at the tournament, he will regain his status as the world's best tennis player.
That being said Wawrinka still feels that Murray has earned his current rank.
Wawrinka: Murray deserves to be No. 1
He told Sky Sports: "He's a great player to follow and to learn from. He always try to push himself and to push the limits and that's how he achieved to be number one in the world so that's something really special."
He continued: "The ranking never lies. He's been winning a lot this year, more than any other player, so he deserves to be No 1."
Murray may well need to win the final event on the calendar to hold onto the top spot, but Wawrinka thinks he is more than capable of handling the pressure and getting the job done.
He said: "He did really well with the pressure, he won Wimbledon this year and he won the Olympics in London so he knows how to deal with it. I'm sure he would love to win the world ATP title here in London."
On Murray's amazing form this year the 31-year-old said: "I think every player tires at the end of the year but if you look at the last few tournaments - winning Paris, winning Vienna, Shanghai, Beijing - he's ready, he's in top form, a lot of confidence to take to this tournament here so he will be tough to beat."
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