Andy Murray has claimed his 18th consecutive tour win over an Australian player by defeating John Millman 6-3, 7-5, 6-2, in the third round at Wimbledon.
The world No.2 has never lost to an Australian player in a grand slam tournament and his first set performance proved why. Winning 12 out of the first 14 points in the match, Murray raced to a 3-0 lead. Milman, who was playing on centre court for the first time in his career, eventually overcame his his early nerves to become a greater challenge during the later stages of the opening set, but he was unable to tame the home favourite. Producing 12 winners and winning 88% of his first service points, Murray closed the set out after just 34 minutes with some nifty footwork near the net.
Murray’s first set momentum came to a sudden halt due to the troublesome British weather, which halted play at the start of the second set. Resuming proceedings under the roof, the match quality reached its peak. Murray was on course to a two sets lead after breaking for 5-3, before Milman broke back to level 5-5, saving two set points on his way. Outlasting Milman in a marathon 15-minute games, the world No.2 managed to grab his fourth break of the match following a failed drop-shot from his opponent to move ahead once again to 6-5. Unlike his earlier disappointment, Murray finally sealed the two-set lead after a deep forehand shot was unreturned by Milman.
The huge effort invested by Milman during the second set resulted in a lull in his form towards the closing stages of the match against a resurgent Murray. Emulating start start to the match, the two-time grand slam champion grab a double break to stroll towards a 3-0 lead and the finish line. The disparity in experience between the two was highly noticeable with Murray maintaining his usual consistent level against his opponents erratic performance. Closing the match out, the world No.2 booked his place in round four with an ace out wide.
Becoming the first man in the bottom half of the draw to book his place in the second week of the tournament, Murray produced 31 winners compared to 34 unforced errors. The error count is a disappointment, but it did little to spoil Murray’s confidence.
“I thought it was a good match with a lot of long rallies. John moves well, doesn’t make too many errors and makes you earn it.” He said.
“Towards the end of the second set it was tough. Obviously, when you go indoors, it slows the conditions down and it was easy to get through the court and get many winners.”
Murray Plays Down Djokovic’s loss
As Murray eased past his match, one of the biggest shocks in Wimbledon history occurred on court one with Novak Djokovic crashing out to America’s Sam Querrey. The unexpected removal of Murray’s nemises has given a massive boost to his Wimbledon Chances. Nevertheless, the Brit has played down the significance of the loss.
“I need to reach the final for that result to have any bearing whatsoever on my performance.” Murray said about the impact of Djokovic’s loss on his title chances.
“I have tough guys left in my half in the draw, especially in the next round.”
It is the tenth consecutive year that Murray reached the last 16 at SW19. In the next round he will play either Nick Kyrgios or Feliciano Lopez.
