Almagro beat Sela 6-4 1-0 retired! He & Andy have met only once before, with Almagro emerging as the victor in four sets in the last 32 at Roland-Garros last year. Time for revenge, methinks, especially on what is arguably Andy's favourite surface...
-- Edited by Stircrazy on Monday 17th of August 2009 07:30:48 PM
Almagro will be a nice match to stretch the stiff legs out from last week, he can be quite dangerous, but the courts are too quick for him to danger an inform Murray-on his favourite surface
On any other surface, Murray just needs to turn up and he'll get the win.
In normal circumstances, I'd agree. But in these back-to-back Masters Series/ATP 1000 (ie Rome/Hamburg, Canada/Cincinnati, Madrid/Paris*) over the last few years, the winner of the first regularly finds it difficult to play well in the second.
Although Nalbandian won both Madrid and Paris in 2007.
*Excluding Indian Wells/Miami, which are 2 week tournaments with twice the R&R time.
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"Where Ratty leads - the rest soon follow" (Professor Henry Brubaker - The Institute of Studies)
On any other surface, Murray just needs to turn up and he'll get the win.
In normal circumstances, I'd agree. But in these back-to-back Masters Series/ATP 1000 (ie Rome/Hamburg, Canada/Cincinnati, Madrid/Paris*) over the last few years, the winner of the first regularly finds it difficult to play well in the second.
Although Nalbandian won both Madrid and Paris in 2007.
*Excluding Indian Wells/Miami, which are 2 week tournaments with twice the R&R time.
Last year Andy got to the semis in Toronto and then won Cinci, that's only one match less than this year.
I'll be very surprised if he goes out in the first match but I will also be surprised if he wins the whole thing. I'm not sure I want him to do that - it would be a shame to lose his record of never failing to defend, but the USO is more important and I don't want him running out of steam there.
Some good news for Murray in regards to his quarter final opponent, as Verdasco has lost 7-6(4), 7-6(4) to Garcia-Lopez!!!
Quarter final will be against either Garcia-Lopez, Youzhny, Bennetaeu or Lopez/Melzer... can't ask for an easier draw than that at a Masters Series event.
Would some kind soul tell where the hell I can follow this match? The bloody LS has been frozen for well over an hour & I've absolutely no idea which stream to try on ADTH or Channelsurfing, if at all!