Murray eyes top spot
CHINA CRISIS FOR NOVAK
EIGHTEEN sets played, 18 sets won. That is the level of consistency during this year’s Asia swing which has given Andy Murray a chance of becoming world No 1 before the ATP World Tour Finals in London next month.
After Novak Djokovic’s shock exit in the semi-finals of the Shanghai Rolex Masters yesterday, Murray took full advantage and further closed the gap at the top of the rankings with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Frenchman Gilles Simon. The world No 2 can now cut the points difference to 2,415 if he triumphs in today’s final against Roberto Bautista Agut, the Spanish fifteenth seed who upset Djokovic 6-4, 6-4.
The gap may reduce further in the coming weeks given the contrasting form of the top two players in the world, with Djokovic citing mental exhaustion after his defeat. The Serbian has a mountain of points to o defend before the end of f the year and a quirk in the e ranking system sees his s 1,300 points from last year’s s World Tour Finals drop off f before the event starts.
If Murray caps his stunn ning fortnight in China with victory today, he can top the he rankings for the first time on November 7 with titles in Vienna next week and Paris ris the following week if Djokokovic fails to reach the final in the French capital.
Murray’s run of form in the Far East has been helped by a better second serve and his movement, which was already outstanding, is even better than before. Simon has played Murray in 17 matches — losing 15 of them — and has noticed a difference in the Briton’s physical condition.
‘It’s impossible to hit the ball through him,’ he said.
‘I’m better than the period where I was having the problems with my back,’ said Murray. ‘Some of the movements I have been able to make, I’m a lot sharper so I’m not concerned about hurting myself or being in pain. That’s something that’s helped a lot.’
While Murray is stronger than ever, Djokovic yesterday showed the mental frailties that have crept in since he completed the career Grand Slam at Roland Garros in June.
The 29-year-old smashed his racket three times on the court in frustration after losing the first set, ripped his shirt open during the second set and engaged in heated arguments with umpire Carlos Bernardes — Djokovic later moaned that the Brazilian official ‘wanted to be the star of the show’.
Just three and a half months ago, Djokovic held all four Grand Slam titles at the same time. ‘There are things I need to regain from the mental point of view,’ said Djokovic. ‘I’m maybe just exhausted by the amount of matches I’ve had in the last 15 to 20 months.’
BRITISH No 1 Johanna Konta may miss the seasonending WTA Finals. Konta will not play next week, having pulled out of the Hong Kong Open with an abdominal strain and her rival Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova beat Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro 6-4, 6-3 to reach the final in Linz, Austria yesterday.