‘King Louis’ to appear at Sun City

LONDON: There were signs yesterday that Andy Murray was still troubled by the sore hip that had bothered him in the build-up to Wimbledon – but they weren’t enough to stop him from motoring into the second round.

At times Murray limped around the baseline but luckily for the defending champion, that problem disappeared the moment the ball was in play as he easily outclassed maverick Wimbledon debutant Alexander Bublik 6-1, 6-4, 6-2, to reach the second round.

“My hip felt good. It’s a little bit sore, but I was moving really good on the court (yesterday),” said Murray, who is the first British man to be seeded No 1 at SW19 since Bunny Austin in 1939.

“If you’re in a little bit of pain, but you can still run as you normally do, that doesn’t affect how you play.”

Asked about his limp between points, he added: “Whether it’s something that’s just happened ... like, subconsciously, my hip’s been sore, I have no idea. I’m not in a lot of pain when I’m walking, that’s for sure.”

There was so much uncertainty about the top seed’s form in the days running up to the grasscourt Major, one British bookmaker had declared Murray ‘friendless’ – with punters backing him to lose early rather than win the title for the third time.

Some doomsayers even feared he could become only the third men’s defending champion – after Manuel Santana in 1967 and Lleyton Hewitt in 2003 – to lose in the first round.

Others highlighted how Murray was on a two-match losing streak against players classified as lucky losers – as Bublik was having lost in the final round of qualifying but made it into the main draw thanks to another player’s withdrawal.

But any hopes that the 135th-ranked Kazakh could add his name to that illustrious list of ‘lucky losers’ were swiftly extinguished as Murray did not let Bublik’s array of unconventional shots, or two rain breaks, throw him off course.

Bublik threw in a tweener – a between-the-legs shot with his back to the net – he threw his body around the court a la Boris Becker and even threw in a few comical grunts that drew laughter from the Centre Court crowd.

But try as he might, the 20-year-old failed to convert any of the six break pointshe earned.

“I’ll spend some time with my physio, get an ice bath, then have a light practice (today). I’ll work a bit on my passing shots and lobs because it will be a different match against Dustin Brown,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rafa Nadal moved seamlessly from months of claycourt success to a satisfyingly smooth first-round victory on grass as he opened his Wimbledon campaign with a commanding 6-1, 6-3, 6-2, victory over Australian John Millman.

Nadal missed the traditional warm-up grass tournament at London’s Queen’s Club to look after his battered body in the wake of his victories at the French Open and in Madrid, Monte Carlo and Barcelona but immediately looked comfortable on the faster surface and displayed the full array of ground strokes that have earned him two Wimbledon titles.

Millman, who missed the first five months of the season with a groin injury, played his part in some entertaining rallies but fourth-seed Nadal, who missed last year’s Wimbledon through injury and was playing his first grass tournament match for two years, was always on top. – Reuters MAJOR winner Louis Oosthuizen has confirmed his place in the 2017 Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player from November 9 to 12.

This year, the $7.5 million tournament at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, South Africa, takes its place as part of the European Tour’s new Rolex Series, a premium category of eight events on the Race to Dubai.

Oosthuizen, who has 13 titles worldwide, triumphed at the Open Championship at St Andrews in 2010 to claim his maiden Major title.

He will make his seventh appearance in “Africa’s Major” when he tees it up at Sun City and aims to improve on his previous best finish of fourth place in 2012.

Oosthuizen said: “I’m always very excited to play the Challenge, and I can’t wait to tee it up again this year.

“Playing in front of a home crowd is always a lot of fun. It all adds up to make this one of the most special weeks on tour.”

Tournament host Gary Player said: “I am delighted to have Louis join us as one of South Africa’s leading international players, and I’m so pleased he continues to support golf in South Africa.”

Oosthuizen heads to Sun City having achieved a careerbest finish of tied second in The Players Championship this year, and amid an exciting evolution of the Challenge.

The tournament will be the seventh of eight events on the Rolex Series, a premium category of tournaments each with a minimum prize fund of $7million.

With the significant prize fund and greater Race to Dubai points on offer, Oosthuizen will be joined by some of the world’s top golfers, including defending champion and world number eight Alex Noren, in the final event before the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.

Tickets for the 2017 Nedbank Golf Challenge on sale at www. ticketpros.co.za.

Adults will pay R100 for access on the practice and pro-am days on Tuesday 7 November and Wednesday 8 November, after which the cost will be R200 on Thursday 9 November and Friday 10 November, and R220 on Saturday 11 November and Sunday 12 November, all excluding a programme.

Children between the ages of 12 and 17 will gain free access on November 7 and 8, after which they will pay R90 on 9 and November 10, and R100 on November 11 and 12, all excluding a programme. Children under 12 will gain free access for the duration of the event.