World No.1 Andy Murray has received public backing from both John McEnroe and Goran Ivanisevic in his bid to reach a second consecutive final at the French Open.
Murray entered Roland Garros with doubts surrounding him after he failed to reach the last eight at three consecutive clay-court Masters events. Nevertheless, he has managed to generate a resurgence in his game by progressing to the quarter-finals of the French Open. On Monday he enjoyed a straight sets win over Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
Evaluating his chances, 1984 Roland Garros finalist McEnroe believes the Brit has the clear edge over Kei Nishikori is their upcoming clash. Nishikori has endured a bumpy route into the second week, being bagelled in both his third and fourth round matches.
“I think he’s been great. I don’t think he was as far away as people were saying. It’s a lot of attitude. He’s tougher to beat in the Slams,” Sport24.co.za quoted McEnroe as saying.
“The draw looked fairly tough in the beginning but now you would have to say you would be somewhat surprised if he didn’t get at least to the semis, if not the final,” he added.
Supporting the views of the 58-year-old is former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic. Ivanisevic, who recently ended his collaboration with Tomas Berdych, noted that Ivan Lendl’s experience has aided Murray’s surge in the tournament.
“I saw him today (Monday). He played very well. He’s playing better and better. Now all the things are possible. Anybody can win.” Ivanisevic said following Murray’s fourth round win.
“You have Ivan Lendl in your team, the guy has so much experience. Andy knows what he has to do. Sometimes you can play so bad before a Grand Slam, but the Grand Slam comes and you win somehow, and you don’t know why. He is in form at the right moment and he is playing better and better every round.”
So far in the tournament, Murray has dropped just two sets. The first was against Andrey Kuznetsov in the first round followed by Juan Martin del Potro in the third.If he defeates Nishikori on Wednesday, the top seed will face either Stan Wawrinka or Marin Cilic.
This year Murray is bidding to win his fourth major title and become the first British male winner of the French Open since Fred Perry in 1935.
