IT’S ONE LOVE TO AWESOME ANDY
Victorious Scot’s tribute to inspirational concert
Andy Murray spent Sunday night listening to the One Love Manchester concert, and still had issues on his mind after his perfunctory tennis business yesterday.
rather than discuss his straight-sets win over russian tearaway Karen Khachanov in the on- court interview post-match, he chose to address the crowd about more serious matters.
‘I’m sure everyone will join me in sharing our thoughts and prayers for everyone who has been affected,’ he said, following a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 victory.
Later he expanded on that, saying of the Manchester concert: ‘It looked amazing, so many people trying to have a good time in what’s a very difficult time.
‘There have been problems everywhere. Paris has had its issues as well. Hopefully we can find some solutions.’
He also expressed the hope that his sport can be a microcosm of a more peaceful world.
‘I do think sport, and tennis in particular, bring lots of people together from many different places.
‘ We share locker rooms together, we compete against each other, we travel around the world.’
as it happens Murray’s next opponent, Kei nishikori, comes from a faraway corner of the globe with a different culture. They will meet in the quarterfinals of a French Open which is reverting to type.
John McEnroe is among those expecting familiar names to be in the frame for the title after a season marked by unpredictable results.
‘The top four guys will probably be in the semi- finals,’ he said. McEnroe also claimed he was not that surprised by Murray’s sudden revival: ‘I didn’t think he was far away. a lot of it is attitude. you would be surprised if he didn’t get to the semis, if not the final.’
Murray’s meeting with nishikori will be a repeat of their uS Open quarter-final last year, in which the Scot failed to respond to his opponent’s dropshots and smart tactics around the net.
Back then, though, Murray was coming to the end of an exhausting summer. This time he is on an upswing, to the point where this will be the world no 1’s first quarter-final at a Masters or Grand Slam event of 2017.
nishikori has also had some physical issues of late, although he was able to stage a revival against Fernando Verdasco to beat him 0-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-0.
Murray accurately summarised his win over the 21-yearold russian powerhouse as ‘probably the best I have played overall here. ‘I have come a long way in the last 10 days. I’m very clear with what I’m doing, see the right shots at the right moments.’ He needed to be at his sharpest against one of those players who will probably take over the world if the current elite crop ever depart the stage.
With his 6ft 6in frame delivering huge power, but not preventing him from being an excellent mover, Khachanov is a real handful. But Murray is now in the kind of mood where he sometimes makes his opponents have to win the point twice, rescuing hopeless causes.
It was not such a happy day for Jamie Murray, who looked to be in sight of a first French Open doubles semi-final and even had a match point.
Playing alongside Bruno Soares, Murray served for the match at 5-3 in the second set, but the pair ended up losing 3- 6, 7- 6, 7- 6 to Mexico’s Santiago Gonzalez and american donald young.