Labouring Andy Murray to face Bautista Agut in Australian Open first round
Andy Murray, who won two of his three slams with searing back pain but is limping now on one good leg at 31, will get no favours from a resurgent Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round of the Australian Open, which starts on Monday.
It was a markedly different Murray who won their three previous meetings, and the Spaniard, seeded 22, is coming off an impressive treble in Doha against Stan Wawrinka, the world No 1 Novak Djokovic, then Thomas Berdych to win the final.
A couple of hours after a dispiriting practice session against Djokovic, Murray drew one of many difficult longshots in the tournament. This is shaping as a tournament of serious upsets, with so many quality players outside the seedings.
If Murray should survive against the artful Agut, it does not get easier. Lurking to stop his run to the semifinals are the rising Russian Karen Khachanov, the defending champion, Roger Federer, and Murray’s in-form compatriot, Cameron Norrie.
Federer plays Denis Istomin first up, then might face Norrie, who beat Taylor Fritz on Thursday to reach the semifinals in Auckland (where he grew up), and meets the young American again in the first round here.
Murray has played some of the best tennis of his career in 12 visits to Melbourne, although he has been cursed to meet Djokovic in four finals and Federer in the fifth. Could this be his farewell to one of his favourite battlegrounds? The signs are not encouraging.
Earlier, on a warm afternoon in front of several thousand fans on Margaret Court Arena, Murray looked decidedly uncomfortable and off the pace in a truncated workout with Djokovic (who has drawn a qualifier in the third quarter). He held serve just once as the Serb – still reaching for his best tennis in a slow start to the season – won 10 of the 12 games contested before their allotted time ran out.
Practice often can mislead, because nobody wants to red-line so close to the real thing. Then again, Murray will be concerned that his rhythm and movement were poor again. He was aware that a solid hit against a career rival against whom he has won 11 of their 36 matches would deliver him worthwhile intelligence about his chances of being competitive at this tournament, and that did not happen.
Ever the realist, Murray will wonder if he still has the weapons. He played well enough against the Australian outsider James Duckworth in the first round in Brisbane last week, before his level fell sharply against Daniil Medvedev, the languidly powerful world No 16 who hit him off the court. Medvedev, like Djokovic, hit flat and hard. The locker room that never sleeps will have taken note.
Murray’s second serve also looks short of penetrating – and that has been a point of vulnerability for him even when fit in recent seasons.
Federer, meanwhile, was relaxed and upbeat about reaching for his 100th career title – and 21st slam. “Ninetynine is an incredible number,” he said. “I could live with that. But I’m so close. I’ll give it a go.”
The 37-year-old Swiss, seeded three here, added: “My goal was always to play as long as possible. I have reminded myself that this was my dream. I’m surprised that I’m still at this level, able to be in the top 10. I think it’s a good thing that not so many players are retiring at 30.”
Kyle Edmund, who reached his first slam semi-final here a year ago, is in the same quarter as Rafael Nadal and is troubled by a knee injury. He pulled out of the Sydney lead-up tournament and will do well to get past Thomas Berdych, who has rediscovered some of his early-career form.