BERCY FIRST REPORT FROM RICHARD EVANS FOR 10SBALLS AS ANDY MURRAY BEATS FERNANDO VERDASCO IN PARIS INDOORS

Written by: Staff on 3rd November 2016

BNP Paribas 2016 Masters Tennis Tournament

BERCY FIRST REPORT FROM RICHARD EVANS FOR 10SBALLS AS ANDY MURRAY BEATS FERNANDO VERDASCO IN PARIS INDOORS

epa05614619 Andy Murray of Britain returns the ball to Fernando Verdasco of Spain during their round 2 match at the BNP Paribas 2016 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 02 November 2016. EPA/IAN LANGSDON |

Bercy 1 – Murray bts Verdasco from Richard Evans, Paris

Breaking News – Andy Murray has lost a set. Not a match – the man chasing the position of world No 1 doesn’t do much of that right now but he was kept on court for 2 hrs 28 minutes in his first outing at the BNP PariBas Masters by that veteran Spanish left hander Fernando Verdasco before winning 6-3, 6-7, 7-5.

Murray, who won back-to-back titles in Beijing and Shanghai without losing a set, relinquished two on his way to the Vienna title last week and would not have lost a third here at Bercy had he not played a poor second set tie-break.

But the victory keeps Murray on track for the goal he is seeking to round off a remarkable year that has already seen him win seven titles, including those triumphs at Wimbledon and Rio where he became the first man ever to win successive Gold Medals in singles.

Novak Djokovic, the man Murray needs to overtake to reach the pinnacle of the game, had an easier afternoon in this renovated indoor stadium at the eastern end of Paris, beating the experienced left hander from Luxembourg Gilles Muller 6-3, 6-4.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns the ball to Gilles Muller of Luxembourg during their round 2 match at the BNP Paribas 2016 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 02 November 2016. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Not that easy, Djokovic insisted, because Muller is a serve and volleyer which made him tricky in Novak’s eyes “because you do not see many of those.”

With the Serb’s two coaches, Boris Becker and Marion Vajda, noticeably absent, Djokovic was, inevitably, questioned about Pepe Imaz, a former tour player turned philosopher who suddenly seems to have started playing a bigger role in the Djokovic camp.

The tennis world has been startled over the past few days as people turned up a video on the web which showed Djokovic, flanked by his younger brother Marko and the WTA player Daniela Hantchukova as well as the tousled-haired Pepe, talking about the value of love and hugs for over two hours. It was shot in the Costa del Sol resort of Puente Romano the week after Wimbledon.

Despite playing well enough to win the Canadian Open in August, it is fair to say that Djokovic has lost focus since achieving his lifes ambition of winning Roland Garros earlier in the summer. Whether Pepe will get him back on track remains to be seen but Novak was not revealing much in press conference here this evening.

Having been asked about Pepe, ‘the guru’, a smiling Djokovic replied, “I don’t know where you heard that he’s a guru, first of all. And second of all, he’s been part of my team for several years. He worked with my brother. He’s been in tennis all his life. I’m glad that he came this week, together with my brother.”

Pressed further, Djokovic continued, “Look, I’m not going go into details. I know certain media are trying to find a story here in calling him a guru and calling our work this and that. To me, it’s all funny and, in the end of the day, people can say and judge and do whatever they want. I’m not going to give them any more room for speculation.”

More room, you can be sure, will be found but the best thing Djokovic can do is win a lot more tennis matches. He has won this title at Bercy for the last three years and, if he just reaches the final on Sunday, that will be enough to prevent the Scot from taking over as No 1 even if Murray wins the title.

Then everything would depend on the eight man ATP Finals at the 02 Arena in London’s Docklands in two weeks where Djokovic is also the defending champion.

Murray was just happy to get through against Verdasco. “I didn’t play my best but I’m happy I won,” he said before heading off for a lengthy recovery period in which he would spend ten minutes in an ice bath.

The Wimbledon champion admitted that his winning habits are probably helping him get through matches like this. “Yeah, it definitely helps,” he said. “Probably puts a bit more doubt in the opponent’s mind. I didn’t feel comfortable tonight because the conditions are so different from Vienna – much faster. The match wasn’t played on my terms. He dictated the match but I think I was stronger at the end.”

That’s what counts and the extent to which Murray can stay strong on this grueling year-end tour, will determine whether or not Britain has a new world No 1 before Christmas.

Andy Murray of Britain reacts during his round 2 match against Fernando Verdasco of Spain during their round 2 match at the BNP Paribas 2016 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 02 November 2016. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Topics: 10sballs.com, Andy Murray, Atp World Tour, Bercy, Bnp Paribas Masters, Fernando Verdasco, Novak Djokovic, Richard Evans, Sports, Tennis News