Brit of all right for victor Murray

THE past and present of British men’s tennis will meet the longer-term future today when Andy Murray takes on Kyle Edmund in the quarterfinals of the Aegon Championships. Murray got through yesterday with a win over British No2 Aljaz Bedene 6-3, 6-4, while the 21-year-old from Yorkshire received a walkover when his French opponent Paul-Henri Mathieu pulled out with a wrist injury. It will be the first time since the 2002 Adelaide Open that two Britons (Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski) have played each other in a last-eight ATP Tour match, while Bedene was the first GB opponent Murray had faced in nearly 10 years on tour. This gives a somewhat more realistic take on the state of the elite game in the UK over the past decade than the winning of the Davis Cup last year, however impressive that was. Brit versus Brit is more likely to happen now, with Murray, Bedene — a UK citizen after moving to Hertfordshire from Slovenia eight years ago — Edmund and Dan Evans inside the top 100. Edmund, who will now break into the top 70, has little to lose and Murray is able to imagine what it will be like for him, having played Henman in 2006. ‘It felt very strange. Tim was someone I looked up to when I was growing up and I always watched,’ recalled Murray, who followed up his 83-minute win over Bedene with a further practice session. ‘Then you’re standing on the other side of the net to him and it’s a bit surreal. ‘I was up 6-2, 5-3 and then coming to serve for the match I felt nervous. ‘It was different to any of the other players I played at that stage.’