TOUGH START

Like quite a few other top players, Andy Murray also had a tough start in his first match at Indian Wells, but, his performance got better and better as the action proceeded and he won eventually to get into the third round of the tournament.

Murray’s opponent in the match was Lukas Rosol who is not quite in the league of the Scot. So, it was supposed to be more of a one sided contest.

But, Rosol who is a couple of years elder to Murray in age stunned everyone as he won the first set in comprehensive fashion. He just outsmarted his Scot opponent in that whole set which made people start wondering if an upset was going to happen, but, that wasn’t the case to be.

Murray came into the second set with ruthless approach and banged some powerful shots in to disturb Rosol’s rhythm. Once he did that, it was all too easy for him. He collected points frequently from that stage and ensured the exit of his Czech opponent from the tournament.

This was the first time ever that Murray and Rosol was playing a singles match against each other.

Talking to the reporters in the post match interview, Murray said, “Lukas is one of those guys who generate a lot of power. So, it’s important for you as an opponent not to let him dominate and that’s what my game plan was in the last two sets. I was on the attack so that I could unsettle him.”

“It’s not quite easy to bounce back from the situation which I was in at one point of time. Your character gets tested in such situations.”

Murray will be locking horns with another Czech player in the third round i.e. Jiri Vesely.

Andy Murray Tennis Shoot Video for British GQ Magazine

Video Score: 5 / 5

Tim Henman and Goran Ivanisevic play tennis on ice

Video clip Score: five / 5

Laura Robson – US Open 2013 – slow motion video

Video Ranking: five / five

FORMER PLAYERS BACK IN FASHION

The top male tennis players in the world have been appointing some ex-players as their head coaches these days. This trend was started by Andy Murray during the 2012 season when he secured the services of Ivan Lendl, the former American player who won a total of 8 Grand Slams during his career.

The no. 1 player in the world, Novak Djokovic, followed his footsteps a few days back as he announced that one of the all time German greats Boris Becker would be his coach for the upcoming season. The Swiss superstar, Roger Federer, who has been struggling with his form in recent times has already been spending time with Stefan Edberg and  trying to regain his old charm back. Edberg is a former Swedish player and also Federer’s role model.

Lendl and Becker were the arch rivals during their playing days. There were 22 games played between these two out of which Lendl had won 12, while, Becker had won 10. But, whenever these two players met in the final of a Grand Slam, it was always Becker who came on top. Now, with these two guys taking charge as the coaches of the two top players in the world, there have been talks that the old rivalry might get renewed.

When Murray was asked about the top players appointing ex-greats as their coaches, he said, “It’s hard to say at the moment if it’s turning into a trend, but, it’s actually nice. The guys like Boris and Ivan who has got huge amount of experience can help you a lot.”

The latter half of the last season wasn’t that good for Murray, but, he would certainly want to put that behind him and start the new season on a fresh note.

Tim Henman Tries Tri-tennis

Movie Rating: / five