ANDY MURRAY now feels part of the Famous Four of world tennis.

Despite losing to Roger Federer in Monday’s US Open final, the Brit has no doubts he belongs alongside the current greats of the game - although he admits he still has to improve.

Murray accepts he was given a tennis lesson by Federer at Flushing Meadows as the Swiss maestro claimed his 13th Grand Slam title - just one short of Pete Sampras’ record.

But the world rankings never lie and today the ATP’s computer lists Murray just behind the top three of Rafa Nadal, Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Murray went down 6-2 7-5 6-2 against Federer and admitted: “I wish I could have done a few things better and given myself a few more opportunities.

“But I’m sure after a few days, when it sinks in, I’ll realise it’s obviously been a very good couple of weeks.

“I’ll try my best to work on my game, work harder and hopefully come back and do better next time. I don’t want to be remembered for losing in the final.

Break

“For me, I was effectively three sets from winning a Grand Slam - which is a lot closer than I was last year.

“I have worked hard to get here but I have to work even harder . . . improve my game and get stronger physically.

“This year, beating Nadal in the semi-finals was probably the biggest achievement for me. Mentally, it was huge for me.

“This year, I have beaten Federer, Djokovic and Nadal so I feel I belong here. I just need to do it in the big tournaments consistently.

“I beat Nadal but I could not do it against Roger. But I want to win this tournament - I want to win the Australian Open and I want to win Wimbledon and I will try and do something about it.”

There is little doubt Murray was beaten by the better player on Monday night - although the final score might have been closer had a second-set line call gone the Scot’s way and given him a vital service break.

He added: “I dominated that set but I could not convert the chances. He actually missed a backhand, which should have been my game.

“I would not necessarily have won the match or anything but it would have given me a bit of confidence.

“I wasn’t really ahead in any of the sets and that made it tough.

Champ ... Federer

“But I have to look ahead and be confident. I’ve been getting consistently better this year. Each month I’ve been making improvements.

“My results have got better. My ranking’s been moving up steadily and this was my first Grand Slam final.”

Murray, 21, revealed he has bought a pad in Florida but will spend the next few days back in his London flat preparing for next week’s Davis Cup clash against Austria at Wimbledon.

And the British No 1 has a $1million cheque to bank following his magnificent run in New York.

He admitted: “I have bought a place in Miami. I like it there, I went there for a few days after Wmbledon. A million dollars is a lot of money and I don’t know what I’ll do with it, although I’m sure my girlfriend Kim has an idea!”

Despite his straight-sets win, Federer had kind words for Murray - having taken a dig at the Brit earlier this year by suggesting he had not changed his game over the last couple of seasons.

Destroyed

Federer said: “He’s improved a lot.

“Winning in Cincinnati and doing so well here, and also at Wimbledon, has done him a lot of good. He’s got many different opportunities to play any player and that is what makes him dangerous.

“He’s got the good slice, he can come to net, he can stay back, he can stay very far back.

“So he’s got three different options and not many players have that out there. For this reason you need to adapt a little bit on how he plays you.”

Former British hero Tim Henman believes Murray will be the best player on the planet one day.

Henman, who reached six Grand Slam semi-finals before quitting last year, said: “I really think he can be No 1 in the world.

“He is only 21 and it is phenomenal how quickly his game is improving. He got destroyed by Nadal at Wimbledon but he played the match of his career to beat him in the US Open semis.

“I wouldn’t have thought he’d waste any time worrying what other people think.

“Fortunately, Andy is more focused on his own game and where he needs to improve.”