Watched Murray’s first round match at the French Open yesterday as he just squeezed through. Whilst he should clearly be applauded for coming through what was undoubtedly a tough first rounder, seems to me it was largely down to the frailty of his opponent rather than an upswing in Murray’s performance.Gasquet was much the better player for two and a half sets and was by far the more attacking player. Murray once again demonstrated his mastery of the art of defensive tennis but he never really upped his game – Gasquet simply went from brilliant to mediocre as he quite visibly tired; just another 15 minutes at the level he had been playing and Andy would have been gone in three. I’m a big fan of Andy (so much superior than Henman and look how we lauded him) but you do feel that the next clay courter he meets who doesn’t wilt like Gasquet will find him out. Just wish he would play a little more aggressively rather than just focus on eliminating mistakes. Of course if he gets to the final I shall be back to eat my words. 🙂
Marching On…..
Well, he’s now beaten Chela and Marcos Baghdatis so may have to revise my opinion – although losing the third set to love in his match today means the jury is still out – let’s see what happens when he hits a drop in form like that against a top ten clay courter. Watch this space
Opinion Vindicated?
Well beaten by Berdych, who out gunned him from start to finish. Defensive tennis, no matter how well played, won’t get him the Grand Slam he craves. It doesn’t work on clay, and it hasn’t worked on the hard courts or Wimbledon either. There will always be a Berdych or a Nadal at the French, a Federer or Dol Potro on the hard courts, and a Federer or Roddick at Wimbledon (not forgetting Djokovic). He’s got the talent, but maybe he does need to rethink the game plan?