Murray has measure of Djokovic

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:24

The British number one takes on Djokovic in the Sony Ericsson Open showpiece in Miami on Sunday bidding for his third Masters title after triumphs in Cincinnati and Madrid last year.

“I feel confident and I’ve had a really good run so far this year,” said Murray. “I’m not going to put any extra pressure on myself for the match on Sunday.”

Murray also reached the final in Indian Wells a fortnight ago before losing to Rafael Nadal, a run that saw him close in on Djokovic’s world number three spot.

The Serbian’s win over Roger Federer in Friday’s semi-finals means Murray cannot overtake him this week but victory on Sunday would pile the pressure on.

Ahead of their seventh meeting, all of them in Masters events, Murray said: “I think, if both of us play well, it’ll be a great match.

“I’m sure he feels the same way. I know I’ll have to play well if I want to beat him. The last couple of times I played I sort of figured out a way to play against him, whereas before I struggled a little bit.”

Murray reached the final with a 6-1 5-7 6-2 victory over Juan Martin del Potro, who had knocked out Nadal in the last eight. The Scot described the first set as “perfect” and then showed his battling qualities to prevail after the Argentinian hit back in the second.

Of his performance, Murray said: “I played a great first set. I’m sure it’s easy to say that I dropped my level a little bit, but I was playing great tennis in the first set.

“He served really well in that (second) set and put pressure on my service games. In the third I managed to fight back and played well again. I’m feeling good and I’m hitting the ball well, and I’ll try and do the same thing in the final.”

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