TENNIS:For more than a decade Tim Henman fretted and strained to come to terms with the often extreme conditions at the Australian Open, be it the fierce heat or a swirling wind, without ever convincing himself or his supporters he would ever make the breakthrough into the quarter-finals and beyond, as he did at the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
By contrast Andy Murray, who will play Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela for a place in the last 16 tomorrow, is already, in only his second visit, displaying an altogether more integrated and balanced approach. His 7-6, 7-5, 6-4 second-round victory over Spain's Fernando Verdasco was perhaps a little prosaic and dour, but then everybody had the vestiges of the previous night's match between Gael Monfils and Marcos Baghdatis swirling through their minds.
Everything paled by contrast. However, towards the end of his win Murray began to orchestrate the crowd, and growl encouragement to himself, and must surely have made a note of how Monfils captured the hearts and minds of the crowd in the Rod Laver arena. Doubtless he will respond accordingly should he play there next week.
It was Chela who knocked the young Scot out in the first round last year, when Murray admitted to playing "silly tennis" in trying to be too aggressive. Twelve months on he has matured both as a person and as a player. This was notably evident in the second set against Verdasco when he suddenly hit a flat patch, taking one point out of 14, to go 4-1 down.
There was no panic, and no losing control with pointless and energy-sapping tirades. Calmly, Murray probed and pressed with resolution and skill, and gradually shifted matters back in his favour. It was not flashy but it was wonderfully effective against a player capable of hitting winners of outrageous velocity and penetration.
"He's a really, really tricky guy to play. You know, he's beaten a lot of top players, and you can see why. He's got a really good first serve, and obviously him being a lefty makes it tougher."
It was all a far cry from Murray's opening match, played in the same Vodafone arena, but with the roof closed. Against the other Spaniard, Alberto Martin, he dropped only one game in total. By the end of the third game against Verdasco he had conceded twice as many, and lost his serve in the process. Not that this proved crucial, for both players were broken three times in a topsy-turvy opening set which lasted nearly an hour.
Murray was affected most by the temperature of the playing surface rather than the heat or the airless, humid conditions. "You feel your feet burning. They're sore when you come off court, while the lactic acid builds up in your legs. I've played in hotter conditions, but the heat of the court makes it so much tougher here."
Chela feels his game matches up well with Murray's, and is confident he can win again, despite losing their last encounter in the Paris Indoor last autumn. Murray said: "It's going to be really difficult, but I feel I'm much better prepared than last year. I'm in better shape and I've got more experience."
His older brother, Jamie, is also here in Melbourne and yesterday, partnering Germany's Benjamin Becker, was beaten in the first round of the doubles.
"It's great to have someone in your family around at the big tournaments, someone that you can hang out with and have fun with," said little brother. "I would love to play doubles with Jamie at Wimbledon."
His brother's presence has also helped in what can be a claustrophobic relationship between player and coach, in this case Murray and Brad Gilbert. "You can go out for dinner with your brother and your coach. It's not just one-on-one all the time. That makes it much easier."
Murray has also been appreciative of the crowd support he has received here. "It's amazing to come to a tournament that's not at home and feel like the crowd is for you. I'm sure those playing against Lleyton Hewitt will tell you how really difficult it is when you've got that many people screaming against you. So it makes it so much easier when you have them on your side. I can't believe so many people enjoy watching me play because it's definitely not very interesting," said Murray, who does a nice line in self-deprecation. "Compared with last year I'm much happier and definitely having more fun on the court."
It will obviously get considerably more difficult as the pressure and expectations grow, particularly should Murray meet Spain's Rafael Nadal, the world number two, in the fourth round. But Murray thrives on such possibilities.
Guardian Service
