Andy Murray Vs Novak Djokovic - Semi Final - Sony Ericsson Open (Miami Masters) 2007

UPDATE: Just got back but only have a couple of mins. Murray vs Djokovic is due at 8pm (UK Time). You can watch it live on Sky Sports Extra.

Finally got access to the internet so I can do a really quick update. Well, not really an update since I'm sure you already know the results. And because I've been on the road I've had to make do with brief radio updates so you probably know more about what's been going on than I do.

Anyway, for what it's worth, here are my thoughts on the last few days.

Murray vs Kendrick
I saw a replay of this match and it looked pleasingly simple. The occasional flashes of genuis from Murray, but this was a match on cruise control.

Murray vs Mathieu
I got a radio update that said Murray was a set and a break down which sounded ominous. When I finally got the result hours later, I was stunned. Not that Murray had been able to turn it around, but the fact that he had to save match points in the process. Another testament to Murray's new found ability to turn matches around and find a way to win.

Murray vs Roddick
Finished before it started, but after the last tournament then why take the bit of luck that comes your way. Commiserations to Roddick - let's hope he recovers soon.

Murray Vs Djokovic
Unlike the Indian Wells farce, Murray has a day of rest before the Semi-Final. And as the Qtr-Final was mercifully brief, we'll get to see the match that the last tournament should of provided... a fit, rested and determined Murray against Djokovic.

I can't quite figure out whether this result will put Murray in the top ten or not. I don't have time to check it in detail but I'm pretty sure Murray will overtake Nalbandian. Haas, however, didn't have many points to defend and Djokovic will also pick up a lot of points from this tournament.

Moving up to 11th is a cert. But Murray may have to reach the final or win to be certain of the top ten. A win could move Murray up to 8th which would be awesome.

Anyway, Murray vs Djokvic tomorrow. I'm thinking Murray in three sets.

Andy Murray Vs Robert Kendrick - 3rd Round - Sony Ericsson Open (Miami Masters) 2007

Lleyton Hewitt had to pull out with injury, so Robert Kendrick (87) comes through as a lucky loser. Kendrick made the most of it as well, winning his opening match against Raemon Sluiter (147) in straight sets (6-4 6-4).

Murray and Kendrick have met twice. The first was in Newport when Murray double-bagelled Kendrick and the second was in the US Open when Murray dipped in the second set, but still won comfortably 6-2 1-6 6-3 6-3.

This match should be on some time tomorrow, but I'm going on holiday at lunchtime so I won't be able to update. I'll catch up as soon I get a chance to go on-line.

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Paul Goldstein - 2nd Round - Sony Ericsson Open (Miami Masters) 2007

Andy Murray wins 6-2 7-6 (7-4).

1 hour and 34 minutes is a good indication that this wasn't a cake-walk, although it doesn't appear that Murray ever looked in danger of losing control of the match.

AndyMurray.com and the BBC are reporting that Murray broke Goldstein three times in the first set. But Livescore is saying Murray only broke Goldstein twice in the first set without losing his own serve.

Actually, if my maths is correct, and Murray broke three times and held his own serve, then the score would have been 6-0 or 6-1. So breaking Goldstein twice in the first seems more likely.

Either way, Murray clearly dominated despite serve stats being on the lean side.

In the second set there were three breaks each and, although Murray had a chance to serve it out at 5-4 up, Goldstein forced a tie-break that Murray won.

Afterwards Murray talked about a lack of match practice and some fatigue, but this was still a comfortable victory.

Sources:
BBC SPORT | Tennis | Murray reaches Miami third round
AndyMurray.com - Andy moves on in Miami…

Andy Murray Vs Paul Goldstein - 2nd Round - Sony Ericsson Open (Miami Masters) 2007

UPDATE 3: Andy Murray Vs Paul Goldstein is scheduled for "not before" 5pm. Miami are 4 hours behind the UK, so this means a start no earlier than 9pm.

Unless there are any changes, it doesn't look like Sky Sports or Eurosport is covering the tournament at this stage. Sky Sports Extra is scheduled to show some of the later stages in Miami, but it'll be a case of checking back regularly.

I'm going on holiday from Sunday to Friday, so posts will be spasmodic depending if I can find an internet connection. If anyone wants to post updates in the comments, that would be very welcome.

UPDATE 2: Goldstein made a meal of his match against Sweeting before eventually winning in three sets. It doesn't bode well for his chances against the world number 12 - A Murray!

Still some first round matches to play today so it looks like this match should be on tomorrow. I'll check the schedule in the morning and update.


UPDATE: Goldstein and Sweeting are underway and Goldstein has taken the first set 6-2. No surprises so far. The winner of this match will play Murray either tomorrow or, hopefully, on Friday.


Murray is seeded 12th for this tournament so, as with Indian Wells, he gets a BYE to the second round where he will play either Paul Goldstein (97) or Ryan Sweeting (301).

Goldstein is obviously the most likely opponent and has yet to play Murray at senior level. Goldstein has been as high as 58 in the rankings after a good spell in the summer of 2006, but has been in decline ever since.

Looking at the rest of the draw, while there are no easy sections, it's hard not to draw the conclusion that Murray has again received a tough draw.

Hewitt (19) is the likely opponent in the 3rd round with the possibility of Gonzalez (5) in the 4th round. If Murray survives those encounters and isn't completely exhausted, he can look forward to possible meetings with Roddick (3) in the Qtr-Final and Nadal (2) in the Semi-Final.

Of course, these are all likely encounters. In Indian Wells there were plenty of upsets so the draw could look very different by this time next week.

The qualifiers are still going on at present so I can't say exactly when Murray's first match will be. The BBC are reporting that Murray is hoping for his first match to be on Friday so let's hope this means that the Miami Masters are spread out a little more evenly than in Indian Wells.

Source:
BBC SPORT Tennis Murray dismisses injury concerns

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Novak Djokovic - Semi-Final - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

Murray loses 2-6 3-6.

The result isn't a shock as Djokovic is clearly a rising star with a strong all-round game, not to mention the fact that he has about two years more experience than Murray at the top level. What is a shock is the speed with which Murray was dispatched.

Of course, the score doesn't tell the full story.

The reality is that Murray probably should have pulled out before the match began. The injuries he sustained in the previous match may not have felt too severe but, once the match began, it soon became clear that Murray was not in a position to give his all.

The trainer came on and reassured Murray that he was unlikely to do any lasting damage by continuing to play so Murray, to his credit, decided to see the match out.

As usual, there were flashes of brilliance from Murray, the highlight was when he recovered from a brilliant Djokovic lob to play a cross-court winner from the back of the court, almost with his back to the net.

Some cynics might have passed it off as a fluke except that Murray won an almost identical point just a few games later. Djokovic stopped lobbing Murray after that.

But the injured hip proved too much as Murray resorted to playing serve and volley and was just unable to stretch far enough or fast enough to dent the Djokovic serve.

There was one moment of hope when at a set and a break down, Murray got two break back points. But Djokovic served strongly, held his serve and finished off the set at a canter.

This may not have been a good opportunity to compare these players but, credit to Djokovic, he played a solid tournament and is now a top ten player. There's no doubt that Murray will join Djokovic in the top ten and, in my opinion, will quickly overtake him, but a little more patience is needed.

So the match generated frustration for the viewer, but not directed at Muray. Rather, a chunk of the blame must lie with the event organisers.

At the beginning of the tournament Murray was playing lower-ranked players and winning in straight sets in a little over an hour. In between matches Murray had a day off and even had time for a spot of doubles.

By contrast, at the back-end of the tournament, Murray had to battle through an epic three-hour match against Haas and then play his semi-final, less than 24 hours later. Even without the injury, this would have been a tough ask for any player. Especially when Djokovic had yet to play a higher-ranked competitor and had never been out on court for more than 90 minutes.

In fact such was the disparity of the draw, Murray had played almost as much tennis in his 4th round and Qtr-Final matches, than Djokovic had had to play in the ENTIRE tournament up to that point.

Of course a draw, as the name suggests, is random but, at the very least, the organisers should ensure a days rest in between the Qtr-Final and Semi-Final.

Still, cup half full and all that. If at the beginning of the tournament I'd known that Murray was going to reach the semi-final and knock out Davydenko and Haas on the way, I'd have been more than happy.

Murray goes up to 12th in the world rankings and, health permitting, will have a chance to improve on that in Miami in a few days time.

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Tommy Haas - Qtr-Final - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

I've been in bed most of the weekend and conspired to miss the Davydenko and Haas matches. I did manage to catch the Djokovic match though so it wasn't a complete disaster... hmm.

Anyway, I'm sure you know the details by know but for posterity, here's the round-up.

Haas (after Federer) is the in form player of 2007 and after Murray injured his right foot in the first set and then injured everything else in the second, things looked grim.

Murray fell awkwardly hurting his ankle, his hip and obtaining a nasty-looking scrape on his knee. It couldn't have come at a worse moment. After losing the first set 6-3, Murray was a break up in the second and looking to get back in the match.

After the trainer had earned his wage, the match continued and Murray held on to his serve to take the second set 6-3 and level the match.

The third set saw an exchange of breaks, but had to be decided on a tie-breaker. Shades of Roddick in San Jose here as the tie-break just kept going. Haas had match points at 6-5 and 7-6, but Murray held on to eventually win the breaker, 10-8.

The final score: A bruised Murray wins 3-6 6-3 7-6 (10-8)

Sources:
BBC SPORT | Tennis | Murray beats injury to make semis
AndyMurray.com - Andy saves two match points to advance to the semis

Andy Murray Vs Tommy Haas - Qtr-Final - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

The first meeting for these two and both are on top form. Both have only lost three matches so far this year, but Haas has won a couple more thanks to his semi-final run in the Australian Open and only Federer has earned more ranking points.

On paper, this could be as hard a match as Murray has played all year, but the 'X factor' is that they have yet to play a competitive match against each other. How this match will shape up is anyone's guess, but here's mine.

Comparing stats, Haas is a strong server, winning 86% of his service games and facing about 30% fewer break points than Murray. Murray on the other hand is a better returner, carving out 30 more break points while playing two less matches. Murray's record for breaking serve is fractionally under 1 in 3.

People are starting to realise that Murray is one of the best returners in the game right now (currently 7th on this stat) and it's a great weapon to neutralise players who rely on big serves to power through matches (hence his success against Roddick). As long as Murray keeps his own serve strong, then I think he will win in three sets.

This match is due to start at 2am (UK Time) on Saturday morning. Black coffee or Sky Plus - the choice is yours.

It's always risky to look ahead, but Ferrer, Djokovic, Roddick and Nadal are the other four players remaining. Ferrer or Djokovic will play the winner between Murray and Haas. And the winner of that will play either Roddick or Nadal.

And finally, if you're interested, Murray and Henman are out of the doubles after losing in straight sets to Bjorkman and Mirnyi. Let's just assume that it was Henman's fault - J/K.

Source:
BBC SPORT | Tennis | Murray prepared for in-form Haas

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Nikolay Davydenko - 4th Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

So Andy Murray beats the world number 4, Davydenko (again), in straight sets (again): 7-6 6-4

I've been in bed with a nasty cold so I missed this match. A real shame because it sounds like it was a bit special. Just over two hours and with an average of over 6 points per game, this was as epic as a straight sets match gets.

For a change, AndyMurray.com has more info on the match than the BBC, so make sure you check out the link at the bottom of this post. Looking at the stats, what stands out to me is a rock-bottom 1st serve % for Murray (42% overall and down to 38% in the second set) but, by contrast, a total of 10 aces compared to Davydenko's 1.

Afterwards Murray noted that the bounce was a little different from previous courts but from the way the match played out, it looks like Murray got the hang of it.

This is a huge win in what is turning out to be a tough draw for Murray. Haas (9) is next, but compare that to Djokovic who has got to the Qtr-Finals without playing a seeded player and even now will play Ferrer (15), a player ranked 3 places below him.

All of which just makes it all the more impressive that Murray has yet to drop a set.

Sources:
BBC SPORT | Tennis | Impressive Murray stuns Davydenko
Andy’s through to the quarters - AndyMurray.com

Andy Murray Vs Nikolay Davydenko - 4th Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

Davydenko (4) is next and don't let the last meeting fool you, this will be a tough match.

Davydenko has two wins against Murray already, but Murray may have a slight psychological advantage after a comfy straight sets win back in January. Murray has a stronger serve, but Davydenko has a return game that is comparable to Murray - except that Davydenko converts more break points. At this stage it seems there is little to choose between the two players.

This match should be played tomorrow and I'll post the schedule as soon as I get it.

Haas or Gonzalez will meet the winner of this match in the Qtr-Final.

Looking at the rest of the draw, Blake is out, but Djokovic is cruising and has a good chance of reaching the semi-finals.

The other half of the draw still looks strong with Ljubicic, Nalbandian, Roddick and Nadal still in play. The latter two have yet to drop a set.

Murray Vs Davydenko may not be until tomorrow, but Murray & Henman have their next doubles game today and will play Chris Haggard & Rogier Wassen.

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Nicolas Mahut - 3rd Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

Murray wins again: 6-1 6-3

I had to chuckle before the match listening to the commentator describing how Mahut may cause problems for Murray, but Murray should have enough to come through. Would it be wrong to suggest the commentator hadn't watched Murray play for a while.

If Murray looked comfortable playing Moodie - against Mahut, Murray was sitting in a chaise longue with his feet up, sipping at a glass of Long Island Ice Tea. Murray held every serve and only faced one break point in the entire match.

In the first set, Murray raced to a 5-0 lead before Mahut managed to hold a service game. Murray served it out comfortably.

Mahut got more of a foothold at the beginning of the second set but, Murray soon broke again, and at 5-3 down Mahut let a 40-0 lead slip on his own serve and was broken again to complete the match in just 65 minutes.

Murrays first serve percentage was in the 60's again, firing down seven aces in total. Altogether, Murray won 70% of his points on serve.

It used to be that the fun part of watching Murray play was against strong opposition. When Murray wasn't pulling off another surprise victory, he was pushing the best players in the world all the way.

These days, it's as much fun to watch Murray dominate against weaker players. Not because it's fun to watch players get thrashed and it's not as if Murray struts around and shows off - but simply for the joy of watching fluid, confident tennis, interspersed with winning shots of breath-taking genius.

While other top seeds are falling or labouring through three sets, Murray is just cruising. 2007 hasn't just brought better tennis from Murray, it's also brought more confidence and greater consistency.

For getting to the fourth round, Murray has already guaranteed an extra 55 ranking points. If he can progress to the Qtr-Finals, this will go up to 105.

Andy Murray Vs Nicolas Mahut - 3rd Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

Despite what AndyMurray.com might tell you, Safin is out, so Murray will play Nicolas Mahut (94) in the 3rd round.

Mahut needed three sets against Safin, but bagelled him in the third. This might suggest a tough match for Murray, but against a player that's never been higher than 61 in the world rankings, it's hard to imagine Murray not coming off victorious here.

The schedule's been kind to the UK audience again with Murray and Mahut due out second on court number two, with play starting at 6pm (UK time). So, once again, look for a start anytime aftet 7pm (UK time) on Sky Sports Extra.

Looking at how the draws shaping up, Murray looks on course for a meeting with Davydenko (4) in the fourth round. The Qtr-Finals still has Haas (9) and Gonzalez (5) available, although the latter had to dig deep in a tense three-setter against Dancevic so I wouldn't be surprised to see Haas step up here.

But of course, the real shock is Federer going down in straight sets to Canas (60) in only the second round. The unbeaten run comes to an end at the hands of the 29 year old Argentinian who has returned to tennis after a 15 month suspension for failing a drugs test. A former world number 8, but this is still a massive shock for the player who was expected to break new ground in this tournament.

His quarter of the draw looks wide open now. Blake is the top seed, but Ferrer and Djokovic have just seen their chances of reaching the semi-final improve immensely.

In other news, Henman may be out of the singles, but his partnership with Murray got off to a winning start against Chela and Prieto. They needed a champions tie-break to do it, eventually winning 6-0 3-6 10-7.

Jamie Murray and Butorac are also through against Nadal and Lopez. It's a long shot, but the Murray brothers facing each other as competitors in the final is a possibility.

Sources:
BBC SPORT | Tennis | Canas ends Federer winning streak
SportingLife - VICTORY FOR HENMAN AND MURRAY

RESULT: Andy Murray Vs Wesley Moodie - 2nd Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

Murray wins: 6-3 6-3

As is increasingly the case against lower ranked opponents, Murray looked in complete control, racing to a 5-1 lead in the first set. Murray did take his foot of the pedal briefly and allowed Moodie one of his breaks back, but at the next opportunity, Murray served out comfortably 6-3.

The second set started slowly, but Murray got the break in game six. Another hold a piece, but when serving to stay in the match, Moodie faltered and Muray had three match points. He needed all three, but overall the match was as comfortable as the score suggests.

It was plain to see why Moodie had managed to get to the second round with strong net play and a tough serve, but he had nothing that could trouble Murray for any extended period.

Murray's 1st serve percentage was way up again today (74% in the second set, 67% overall) and although he only managed three aces, Murray took advantage of some big serving and finished a lot of points swiftly. It was unusual to see so few lengthy rallys in a Murray match. This was partly due to Moodie's doubles-inspired, net-rushing sensibilities, but also due to Murray's agressive play against Moodie's defensive returns.

The end result was a short, comfortable match, with only one lapse of concentration in game 7 of the first set. Good stuff.

Andy Murray Vs Wesley Moodie - 2nd Round - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

UPDATE 2: Only have a couple of mins to spare. AndyMurray.com is reporting that Murray is second on court, with play starting at 6pm (UK time), so to look out for the match at around 7pm.

This sounds right, but in the unlikely event of Schiavone or Hantuchova retiring injured, the match would start earlier so switch Sky Sports Extra on at 6pm and stay tuned.

http://andymurray.com/about/news/11-03/double-duty-for-andy/

UPDATE: Shows what I know... Moodie comes through in straight sets and has the pleasure of facing Murray on Sunday, no earlier than 6pm (UK time).

Sky Sports Extra is the place to be and I'll try and narrow down the time tomorrow.

Also worth noting that Murray is teaming up with Henman for the doubles. There'd been talk of Murray teaming up with his brother as his ranking wasn't quite high enough to get in, but Jamie got a wildcard, so no problems there.

Murray and Henman will be playing Chela and Prieto in the first round, but I've no idea when.

Qualifying is over so we can narrow Andy Murray's 2nd round opponent down to two players.

It will be either Lukas Dlouhy (109) or Wesley Moodie (142).

Murray and Moodie played way back in 2003 and Murray won 6-4 6-1.

Dlouhy (knocked out Bogdanovic in the last qualifying round) seems the more likely opponent though having won four of his eight matches this year, compared to Moodies 0/2. Dlouhy actually started the year inside the top 100, but it seems that doubles is his strength, starting the year ranked 20th and currently up to 16.

Moodie and Dlouhy are fifth on court so probably won't begin until 12pm (UK time) today. I would guess that the 2nd round match will be on Sunday, but I'll check in tomorrow and confirm it.

So, in theory, Murray looks a cert for round three but no chicken counting. The top ten is on the horizon and from here on in, every match counts.

DRAW: Andy Murray - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

UPDATE 2: The draw is up and you can find it at:

http://www.pacificlifeopen.com/1/draws/

Obviously Murray has a BYE through the first round and then will meet a qualifier (to be decided). After that it could be Safin in the 3rd rnd, Davydenko in the 4th, Haas or Gonzalez in the Qtr-Final and - yes I called it - Federer in the Semi-Final.

It's a long tough road to the semi-final, but the symmetry (see below) is just too perfect. I have a gut feeling about this one.

The possible match-ups above are the top seeds in this quarter of the draw, but there's an outside chance of meeting Henman in the 4th rnd. Henman will probably have to get by Davydenko and doesn't have the benefit of a first rnd BYE, so don't hold your breath on this one.

The first batch of second round matches don't begin until Saturday and are finished off on Sunday, so it's a few days before Murray is in action. In fact we might not even find out his opponent for definite until Saturday, so more patience required. Grrr.

UPDATE: I just had an awesome thought!

The Pacific Life Open could see Federer break the record for consecutive wins (currently held by Guillermo Vilas - 45 wins).

Federer will have to win his semi-final match to break the record but, remember... the last time Federer lost was to Andy Murray.

This means... wait for it... if Murray is drawn in the same half as Federer and keeps winning, he will HAVE to meet Federer before the final.

In other words, for Federer to break the record he may have to get past the same player that last defeated him. The same player that stopped Federer from breaking this record a while ago.

If Federer and Murray meet in Indian Wells this will be a huge deal. Remember, where you read it first.

Well, the women's draw is up, but the men's draw won't be made until later on today. And with Murray not due to start until the second round, it's going to be at least a couple of days before we get any action.

With so much to be gained from the tournaments covering the next couple of months, the tension is really ramping up.

Or is it just me?

Anyway, you might have noticed that Murray has dropped to 14th in the rankings. It's nothing to panic about; basically Djokovic got to the Qtr-Finals in Dubai and that pushed his ranking points up 1715 compared to Murray's 1700.

It's interesting to note that, like Murray, Djokovic only has a handful of points to defend over the next couple of months and also has a great chance to push into the top ten. Murray will have to perform at least one round better over the next couple of months if he wants to stay above him in the rankings.

I'll keep an eye out and post the draw as soon I get it. In the meanwhile, you can check out the official site below.

Pacific Life Open - Official Website

Andy Murray - Pacific Life Open (Indian Wells) 2007

The draw for next weeks Masters Series event will be unveiled soon but first, to stoke your anticipation, here's what you need to know.

The Pacific Life Open is held in Indian Wells, California and is played on a hard court. It's a Masters Series event which means it is only one small step below a Grand Slam. Only the four Grand Slams and the Masters Cup have more ranking points to offer.

Like the Grand Slams, Indian Wells has seven rounds played over a two-week period (compared to five in the average ATP tournament), but 32 seeded players get an automatic BYE to the second round. Federer has won this tournament three years in a row - his first victory coming against Tim Henman in the 2004 final.

Progress in a Masters Series event is almost as difficult as progressing in a Grand Slam because - barring injury - nearly all of the top players will enter. Of the five players above Murray in the current ATP World Rankings, only Ljubicic has reached a final in a Masters Series during the last year.

Last year Murray was unseeded and reached the 2nd round before losing in three sets to Davydenko (Andy Murray - Indian Wells 2006). This year Murray should be seeded in the top 16 which means he could meet a player ranked above him as early as the fourth round.

This will be an exciting tournament to watch and Murray has an excellent chance to pick up a big chunk of ranking points. Movement up the world ranking will depend on what the players around him achieve, but assuming everyone only matches last years performances, here's what Murray could achieve.

Winner: 500 pts - thank you very much - could move Murray up to 9th.
Runner-Up: 350 pts = 9th.
Semi-Final: 225 = 11th.
Qtr-Final: 125 = 12th.

Anything less and Murray would likely hold his position (unless, of course, players below him perform substantially better). So a Qtr-Final or better could move Murray upwards. A final appearance would almost certainly break Murray into the top ten. This is a big ask as Murray could conceivably meet Federer or Nadal as early as the fourth round.

Let's hope Murray is in the opposite side of the draw to Federer :-P

I'll post details of the draw as soon as I have it. No word on which UK channels will be covering the tournament, but bear in mind UK are eight hours ahead of California so we could be in for very early morning matches again.