Murray conquers Seppi in Rome

 

Originally published on: 28/04/10 13:39

Bruised by Soderling in Indian Wells, gutted by 101-ranked Fish in Miami, then positively lethargic in defeat to Philipp Kohlschreiber in Monte Carlo two weeks ago – Andy Murray had started to resemble a… err, well, a Mardy out of water.

Fortunately for the Scot, the notion of ‘three strikes and you’re out’ doesn’t fly on the ATP Tour, and Murray responded with a thumping victory at the fourth attempt on his least favourite surface, downing Andreas Seppi 6-2 6-4 at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome.

A far cry from the hiding he took on his last outing on clay, 22-year-old Murray returned to his former sprightly self against Seppi, displaying  enthusiasm that had been lacking since his run to the Melbourne final in January.

“I have actually been mentally tired since the start of the year and had quite a few niggles after the Australian Open,” he admitted after dismantling Seppi for the fourth time in five meetings.

Breaking the Italian immediately, before lashing away a brilliant forehand to achieve a double break in the fifth game of the opening set, Murray eased doubts over his form by breaking again at the start of the second set to claim a lead he would not relinquish.

“People were panicking because I had played a couple of bad tournaments,” said Murray after recording his first victory since mid-March.

“Last week in Barcelona, I spent a lot of time on the practice court and got back in shape.”

Yet Rome poses a challenge even a fully-fit Murray might struggle to counter, given that he had won just one match – when Juan Martin del Potro retired at the start of the third set in 2008 – in his previous four appearances in the Italian capital.

Unfazed by the statistic, the world No.5 added;
 
“I want to do well in every tournament but I feel less pressure on clay because I haven’t done as well on that surface.”

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