ROGER Federer admits he has been impressed by Andy Murray’s achievements this season and said he hopes the Scot can keep his impressive form going at the US Open.

The Swiss, who has taken the rest of 2016 off in order to fully recover from knee surgery in February and a back problem that ruled him out of the French Open, also believes the new roof over the Arthur Ashe show court at Flushing Meadows, could be to Murray’s advantage.

However, Federer still sees top seed Novak Djokovic as the favourite to win the New York tournament – which starts on Monday – despite his early exits at Wimbledon and the Olympics.

The 35-year-old said: “It hasn’t really changed my opinion that Novak is the favourite, despite a few tough losses. He did win [the Rogers Cup] in Toronto.

“He has a great record against Andy and is a great hard-court player. You see that in the conditions like here and at the Australian Open.

“I think the new roof will help him as well, as it will be more like Australia. Of course, Andy is a great player in the wind, but then so is Novak.

“But I have been very impressed by Andy, what he has done this summer has been incredible. I hope he can keep that going. I think it will be a very exciting US Open and probably a great race between them until the end of the season.”

Federer has set his sights on being fit and firing again in time for next year’s Australian Open. He said on the call to end his season early: “It was a tough decision to say the least, but in some ways a simple decision because your health is the most important thing. I don’t see it as the end of something, it’s the beginning of something. When I come back to the Hopman Cup and then to the Australian Open – that’s what I’m working for now.”

Federer travelled to New York for the launch of the Laver Cup on Wednesday, a new team event to be played between Europe and the Rest of the World, starting in Prague in September next year.

The Swiss has signed up to the competition, along with world No 5 Rafael Nadal, and believes he will come back stronger in 2017. Federer said: “I’m doing well and training as much as possible.

“I’ve been strengthening my quad muscles for when I head into the gym in the next couple of months.

“I remain very upbeat but in a way it’s painful to be here, and it was hard watching the Olympics and not playing.

“I hope to be super strong when I come back in January.”

Federer reached the US Open final 12 months ago, losing to Djokovic.

Meanwhile, Laura Robson made it through the first round of qualifying for the US Open. The 22-year-old, who was handed a wild card into the qualifying draw, is languishing at No 247 in the world after struggling on her comeback from two rounds of wrist surgery.

However, she progressed past South Korea’s Su Jeong Jang, winning 6-3, 6-2.

Robson, who reached the fourth round at Flushing Meadows in 2012, crucially broke in the eighth game of the first set to take a 5-3 lead before serving it out.

After squandering an early break in the second, she regained her composure to reel off four successive games and earn a second-round tie against Bulgaria’s world No 142 Isabella Shinikova.

There was more British success as Tara Moore also made it through to the next round. The 24-year-old, currently ranked at 171, hopes to make her maiden appearance at the US Open and is one step nearer that goal after a 6-4, 6-3 success over Tereza Mrdeza from Croatia.

Moore took the first set with a crucial break at 5-4 and then ran away with the second, breaking three times to set up a meeting with Turkey’s Ipek Soylu.