TENNIS: Tough match for Murray
quite as much as he was the last time he
played Fernando Verdasco when they meet in
the fourth round of the French Open.
Murray went into extra time in a fifth set for
the first time in his career in beating German
Philipp Kohlschreiber 3-6 6-3 6-3 4-6 12-10
at Roland Garros.
The pair had been held up by darkness at 7-7
on Saturday as Murray battled cramp, and it
was the Scot who came out on top, just, after
40 minutes on Sunday.
It was Murray's first five-set match since he
fought back from two sets down to defeat
Spaniard Verdasco in the quarter-finals at
Wimbledon last year.
The win put Murray into the last 16 in Paris
for the fifth consecutive time - he missed the
tournament last year through injury.
In a nod to his critics, the 27-year-old said:
"Not many people think I play particularly well
on clay, so I would say that would give him
(Verdasco) an edge there. He's obviously had
some good results on clay.
"But he plays well on every surface. It will be
a tough match, for sure. He's incredibly
talented, a very, very tough player. I need to
play a good match and do everything I can to
be fresh."
Extremely tough
The Kohlschreiber match was Murray's first
five-setter since his back surgery last
September and his chance of progressing
further may well depend on how well he
recovers physically.
Murray produced one of his best performances
on clay in Rome two weeks ago in losing a
tight quarter-final against Rafael Nadal and
believes he is learning all the time on the
surface.
He said: "I've played well on clay the last few
weeks. This last match against Philipp could
have been one of my best wins if I managed to
close out the fourth set, because he's a very,
very tough player. Obviously it ended up
becoming an extremely tough match.
"But it's a very good win for me to beat a
player like him on this surface. Hopefully I can
keep improving, keep learning.
"There were times when I was getting too far
behind the baseline and being a bit too
passive. I just need to try and make sure I get
that balance right. And when I do, I play some
good clay-court tennis."
Verdasco also had to finish off a match on
Sunday, although his victory was a routine
one over Richard Gasquet.
The 30-year-old, who is through to the last 16
for the first time in four years, said: "Playing
Murray is never easy. He has wonderful
tennis, and he won grand slams already, so I
think he deserves all my respect.
"I have nothing to lose. He is a favourite
because of his ranking. So I will try and play
my best tennis."
Culled from Skysports
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