| By Piers Newbery |
Andy Murray overcame the unorthodox style of Jamaica's Dustin Brown to reach the third round of the US Open.
The British number one coped well with Brown's mix of big serving, volleys and constant drop shots to come through 7-5 6-3 6-0 in New York.
It was another impressive display from the Scot in blustery conditions at Flushing Meadows.
Murray goes on to face Swiss 25th seed Stanislas Wawrinka, who beat Juan Ignacio Chela 7-5 6-3 6-4.
"I'd never played him before so at the start of the match it was very interesting," Murray said afterwards.
"He went for his shots huge and was hitting fun shots so I was glad to get off in straight sets. I kind of knew what to expect coming into the match. I've been told he likes to put on a bit of a show beforehand.
 | It's not bad losing to Andy Murray, I'm definitely not upset Dustin Brown |
"The crowd obviously enjoy watching that but it went from being a great atmosphere at the end of the first set to just pretty quiet because there wasn't a whole lot going on out there.
"I started well, I didn't really give him many chances. I've not really ever seen him play before. He has a very fast service action, so it took a few games to start to read the serve a little bit.
"I just had to focus on playing solid and making as many returns as possible. When you play as high-risk tennis as that, it's difficult over five sets to keep it up."
Brown, ranked 123 in the world, had become the first man from his country to reach the second round of a Grand Slam since 1974.
And the dreadlocked Jamaican certainly made his mark with his unusual playing style and on-court eccentricities, such as insisting on using the same ball throughout his service games and choosing not to sit down at the changeovers.
The match had something of a false start, with a 20-minute rain delay interrupting proceedings after three games, but once the action resumed it was the flamboyant Brown who gripped the attention of the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
And as the heavy serves and huge groundstrokes pounded down, there were moments of real hope for the Jamaican contingent in the early stages.
| 606: DEBATE Your thoughts on Murray's victory |
However, Murray remained calm under the onslaught with some solid serving of his own and and earned his first break point at 5-4, but Brown saved it with a heavy first serve and screamed his delight.
The Scot was beginning to get the measure of his man though, and two games later a breathtaking half-volley forehand winner took Murray to 15-40 before he sealed the set with a backhand arrowed down the line.
Brown's resistance might not have been broken but it had been dealt a heavy blow and Murray capitalised on his advantage, taking total control with successive breaks at the start of the second set as he moved 5-0 clear.
The world number four needed that cushion as Brown's radar kicked back into life in the latter stages of the set, but after dropping three straight games Murray focused well to close it out at the second opportunity.
A double-fault and a regulation volley into the net did for Brown at the start of the third and, with Murray increasingly keen to attack the net, the outsider was left with nowhere to go.
A blistering backhand winner helped Murray move 5-0 up for the second set in succession and this time he made no mistake to seal victory in one hour 24 minutes.
"It's not bad losing to Andy Murray," said Brown. "I'm definitely not upset, that's why it was a good first set. The other two sets he started getting more comfortable and definitely returning really well.
"I only know him from watching him on TV. I wasn't worrying about him too much, I just tried to play my game and make sure that I'm doing the things I'm supposed to do.
"I wasn't trying to go out there and worrying too much about the opponent. If you do that, then you're just going to go nuts out there. I lost 5, 3, and 0. It happens."
0 comments:
Post a Comment