Murray mind games

Rafael Nadal volleyed the pressure straight back to Andy Murray after setting up their fourth and final meeting of the year today in London as he dismissed his rival’s claim that he had little chance against the world No1.

Murray made the assertion after beating Tomas Berdych to reach the semi-finals of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena, but Nadal claims British No1 Murray is favourite to reach tomorrow’s £1million final.

“The conditions are a bit easier for Andy than for me here,” said Nadal. “The only chance for me to win is to play my best tennis and see if Andy doesn’t play his highest level. The pressure is back to him now.”

Nadal booked his passage by overcoming Berdych 7-6, 6-1. Berdych had not won a set in seven matches against Nadal but he fought brilliantly until the tiebreak, when the Spaniard’s aggressive defence broke his resistance.

Murray, who watched the match, knows he must be at the top of his form today against a player who has made 2010 his own.

“Every time I play him or Federer it’s very difficult to win against either of them,” said Murray. “They are the best players of all time, so you can win against them sometimes, you can lose against them sometimes, but it’s definitely fun.”

Murray has had an inconsistent year but he defeated Nadal in the semi-finals of the Australian Open and at the Toronto Masters on hard courts.

At Wimbledon, Nadal took his revenge with a straight-sets win in the semi-finals over a man who lost their first five encounters but since then is 4-3 ahead in matches.

“Probably just experience,” said Murray to explain the turnaround. “He matured a lot younger than I did and was a great player when we met the first few times.

“For me, it has taken a bit longer to get to that level where I can compete with him. Now that I have and I play against him on hard courts I’ve managed to win against him a few times, but every time it’s a very tough match.”

That is certain this afternoon, but if Murray can get his first serve firing and find the target with his forehand, he has a decent chance.

Courtesy: Daily Express