Australian Open

[Geoff Kilpatrick]

Last year - that geezer from Majorca who Murray just whupped. Djokovic and Nadal both did it in 2008 as well. It's not a rare occurrence in Australia - but excitingly, is the sort of thing winners of the tournament do.

 

First, Nadal. A great player is in very serious trouble. He cannot shake off his fitness problems, and since his return, cannot beat top ten players. It's very sad, but I'm starting to think he's finished. Experts warned for years that no-one could take the punishment he'd put himself through from a very early age; and it's looking that way now I'm afraid.

 

But as for Murray: five matches played, no sets dropped. And more than that, the stars are aligning: the weather in Australia, usually sweltering at this time of year, is cool and pleasant. His next opponent is in the virgin territory of a first Grand Slam semi-final; Murray's in his third. Cilic has come through three long five set matches to get this far; Murray has cruised through. And if he wins - as he should - he'll have an extra day's rest compared to his final opponent.

 

I'm not saying he will win this tournament - Djokovic was my tip, so I'll stick with him - but no question, he has a fantastic chance.

 

The forecast for the weekend is mid 30's. However, with the finals being played at night, that will help.

 

The real issue for Murray is that Federer is in scary form! He destroyed Hewitt last night (which is good, because Hewitt is a male appendage!)

[I P Knightley]

Great victory for Murray. He has a tough opponent next though, the big Croatian will be no walkover. However Murray has not dropped a set where as Cilic has been involved in 3 five setters!!

 

If Murray wants to play at the top of the game he has to beat the likes of Cilic!

 

ATP say that he has a 3-1 winning record against Cilic. Unfortunately, the 1 for Cilic was the most recent, at the US Open where Murray got PUMPED OOT in straight sets.

 

Cilic is a serious contender but, apart from round 1 where he played Santoro (who's nearly as old as me), he's had to work hard to get through to the SF.

 

I'm hopeful that Murray keeps his head screwed on for the semi and doesn't go in thinking what the rest of us are about it being a favourable draw...

 

As for the other half, I'm reluctant to write off Federer. Davydenko got the better of him in a couple of 3-setters but, as he showed against Murray in the '08 US Open, he goes to a different level in the big ones and will aim to swat Diddydonkey aside. Djokivic is a lurking menace; it will be interesting to see how his mentality fares up if he's up against Fed. He's not always shown great mental strength in such situations.

[shaun.lawson]

The forecast for the weekend is mid 30's. However, with the finals being played at night, that will help.

 

The real issue for Murray is that Federer is in scary form! He destroyed Hewitt last night (which is good, because Hewitt is a male appendage!)

 

Indeed he is. But Federer always destroys Hewitt - Lleyton has nothing he can hurt him with, and other than one extraordinary comeback in the Davis Cup Final some years back, has always had to bend the knee to the master. Also, Fed looked ridiculously imperious at last year's Wimbledon semi against Tommy Haas, but in the final, was taken to the very limit and beyond.

 

Federer's still awesome, but very slowly, is becoming more vulnerable than he was. He could well win the event; he could also lose his next match. We'll just have to see.

[Martin]

 

I can't find the stats to confirm this claim but I reckon that that's about the 5th time a Murray opponent has retired hurt in the last 12-18 months or so.

 

Just actually checked that out because I hadn't realised that. Last year 5 players retired in total and it was 3 the year before which says it all.

 

Quite funny that last year, a player retired against him in four successive tournaments.

 

His next opponent is in the virgin territory of a first Grand Slam semi-final; Murray's in his third. Cilic has come through three long five set matches to get this far; Murray has cruised through. And if he wins - as he should - he'll have an extra day's rest compared to his final opponent.

 

I'm not saying he will win this tournament - Djokovic was my tip, so I'll stick with him - but no question, he has a fantastic chance.

 

Surely Cilic has got to be tired but I think it's good that Murray lost to him at the US Open. He'll be out for revenge and knows the same passive tactics won't work.

 

The point about the extra day rest could be vital because the top half looks brutal and there's almost certainly going to be some long matches. Djokovic won't be tired though because he's had probably the easiest route through to the quarter finals ever.

 

I tipped Davydenko for the final, he better not muck this up for Murray! I think Murray would prefer Djokovic.

 

Seem to remember him having a good record against Djokovic, particularly recently.

[shaun.lawson]

ATP say that he has a 3-1 winning record against Cilic. Unfortunately, the 1 for Cilic was the most recent, at the US Open where Murray got PUMPED OOT in straight sets.

 

Cilic is a serious contender but, apart from round 1 where he played Santoro (who's nearly as old as me), he's had to work hard to get through to the SF.

 

I'm hopeful that Murray keeps his head screwed on for the semi and doesn't go in thinking what the rest of us are about it being a favourable draw...

 

As for the other half, I'm reluctant to write off Federer. Davydenko got the better of him in a couple of 3-setters but, as he showed against Murray in the '08 US Open, he goes to a different level in the big ones and will aim to swat Diddydonkey aside. Djokivic is a lurking menace; it will be interesting to see how his mentality fares up if he's up against Fed. He's not always shown great mental strength in such situations.

 

I think Cilic is in the traditional Henman position of having punched above his weight to reach the semi, and worked very hard to do so. Murray's in the traditional position of Sampras, Agassi, Federer or Nadal: in other words, that of a possible winner of the event. The abuse Murray will get if he doesn't beat Cilic isn't worth thinking about; he really, really should though.

 

Incidentally, that's not to dismiss Cilic as a future Grand Slam winner. His progress is very exciting, and he's exactly the kind of player I've warned about in the past who could overtake Murray if he doesn't get the monkey off his back and break through. But at this point in their careers, Murray's very clear favourite - and playing better than Roddick or Del Potro, both of whom Cilic needed all five sets to get past.

[shaun.lawson]

 

The point about the extra day rest could be vital because the top half looks brutal and there's almost certainly going to be some long matches. Djokovic won't be tired though because he's had probably the easiest route through to the quarter finals ever.

 

 

 

 

For the record, I didn't tip Djokovic because I thought he'd been playing sensationally well. I tipped him because in a wide open event, in which six or seven men all had a serious claim to going all the way, I thought he had the best draw, which can often make all the difference. The looming problem for him is how well Federer and Murray are playing.

[Martin]

Have you noticed how much weight Nadal has lost in the last year or so. presumably he was advised to tone his muscular frame so that his knees were supporting less weight. Too little too late it would seem. He might need to take an Agassi style extended break from the sport with some specialists and come back with a different style of play.

 

Didn't also help that had less than a month's break at the end of last season. No time to recover at all.

 

His schedule for the last few years has been brutal and I think it's caught up with him. His body has definitely let him down but I think it's also a mental thing as well. He has to work so hard for every single point and there's only so long that you can do that for, especially when he was playing that much from such a relatively young age.

 

He needs to take a break but I don't think he will. At the very least he should take time off until the clay court season and stay away from hard courts which is much tougher physically.

[andy-y]

livescore is saying murray has retired is this correct?

[scott_jambo]

livescore is saying murray has retired is this correct?

 

yup. Shame for the lad.

[Martin]

For the record, I didn't tip Djokovic because I thought he'd been playing sensationally well. I tipped him because in a wide open event, in which six or seven men all had a serious claim to going all the way, I thought he had the best draw, which can often make all the difference. The looming problem for him is how well Federer and Murray are playing.

 

He had a really easy looking draw at the start but it opened up even more to this stage. He's not got a great record against Tsonga though, so that match will be interesting. Find out much more how well Djokovic is playing there.

 

Couldn't believe that Tsonga's match with Almagro in the last round was apparently his first ever five set match.

[andy-y]

livescore is saying murray has retired is this correct?

 

Just ignore me im talking pants

[loveofthegame]

Amazing amazing performance. He can certainly go all the way if he plays like that in the next two rounds, but it'll be tough.

 

Come on Andy!!!!

[steve123]

amazing so far but ??????

[mulleted_jambo]

Anyone know when the final is???

 

I would guess Saturday. If so would it be 9am again??

[I P Knightley]

In celebration of Andy's march into the semi-finals, I have treated myself to a 2 litre bottle of Highland Spring still water.

 

I couldn't help but notice that the price has risen from 85 to 86 pence.

 

As long as it's supporting Andy Murray towards a first Grand Slam title, I'm sure it's a penny well spent.

[I P Knightley]

Anyone know when the final is???

 

I would guess Saturday. If so would it be 9am again??

 

Oz time it's Sunday 19:30 which translates to 08:30 Sunday for us. If Murray makes it past Cilic, I expect that church will be quiet

[I P Knightley]

Just took a look at the highlights on the BBC and was mightily impressed by the level of tennis on both sides.

 

Nadal was still playing some great stuff right up to the 2nd set tie-break & into set 3 so I hope that the retirement was a conservative, tactical thing; realising at 3-0 that the game was a bogey and he'd be better not damaging the knee further. Looking at the match, I reckon if he'd been up against almost any other player, he'd have seen it out, probably winning.

 

I may be imagining it but there seemed to be a look of genuine disappointment on Murray's face when he realised that Nadal was chucking it. Definitely a lot of mutual respect there.

 

As for Cilic - he has played over 18 hours of tennis this tournament. Murray has played about 10. No matter how young, fit and well-trained you are, that's got to take its toll in some way. But I won't tempt fate...

[Eldar Hadzimehmedovic]

Kicking myself for tempting fate by saying it but he's looked very, very strong. I haven't seen him look so focussed at a Grand Slam. He had the beating of Nadal, with or without injury. It's great to see him being so aggressive. He looks like he believes this is his. Cue him getting cuffed by Cilic.

[Tommy Wiseau]

Just took a look at the highlights on the BBC and was mightily impressed by the level of tennis on both sides.

 

Nadal was still playing some great stuff right up to the 2nd set tie-break & into set 3 so I hope that the retirement was a conservative, tactical thing; realising at 3-0 that the game was a bogey and he'd be better not damaging the knee further. Looking at the match, I reckon if he'd been up against almost any other player, he'd have seen it out, probably winning.

 

I may be imagining it but there seemed to be a look of genuine disappointment on Murray's face when he realised that Nadal was chucking it. Definitely a lot of mutual respect there.

 

As for Cilic - he has played over 18 hours of tennis this tournament. Murray has played about 10. No matter how young, fit and well-trained you are, that's got to take its toll in some way. But I won't tempt fate...

 

 

 

They translated what Nadal was saying to his trainer on Eurosport when he was getting treatment. He apparently said to him that he couldn't take another 3 sets playing against "him", so you may be right there. I thought Nadal looked really disappointed as well and clearly was seen apologising to Murray for taking the net handshake away from him. I think without that respect, he would have quit a lot earlier than he did.

[I P Knightley]

Fed comes out playing like a haddy & is getting PUMPED by Diddydonkey.

 

Shows that nothing can be taken for granted. In his last couple of matches he'd looked unstoppable.

[benny]

Fed comes out playing like a haddy & is getting PUMPED by Diddydonkey.

 

Shows that nothing can be taken for granted. In his last couple of matches he'd looked unstoppable.

 

 

The only reason Federer is no1 is because Nadal got injured.Great champ but the year before Nadal owed him.

Murrays performance was brilliant yesterday,as was Nadal.Hope his injury is not career threatening.

[vegas-voss]

Fed comes out playing like a haddy & is getting PUMPED by Diddydonkey.

 

Shows that nothing can be taken for granted. In his last couple of matches he'd looked unstoppable.

 

He turned that around quick.In the space of myself having a dump he went to what looked like going 2 sets down to now looking totally in control of the match.

[loveofthegame]

Davydenko in dodgy collapse shocker. Wonder home many of the Russian mafia had silly money on Federer when Davydenko led 6-2, 3-1 and had 2 break points for double break.

 

Obviously probably not, i just think there's something very dodgy about Davydenko!

[I P Knightley]

The only reason Federer is no1 is because Nadal got injured.Great champ but the year before Nadal owed him.

Murrays performance was brilliant yesterday,as was Nadal.Hope his injury is not career threatening.

 

But the counter argument is that the only reason Nadal owned Federer was that he was pushing himself to an impossible level that could not be sustained for more than a couple of years so the advantage was only ever going to be a short term one.

 

So, yes, you can get the better of Fed but it's going to cost you

 

 

Davydenko in dodgy collapse shocker. Wonder home many of the Russian mafia had silly money on Federer when Davydenko led 6-2, 3-1 and had 2 break points for double break.

 

Obviously probably not, i just think there's something very dodgy about Davydenko!

 

I thought two things when I switched on for an update:

 

First was about those allegations that Davydenko has dodgy connections and wondering how the bookies were taking this.

 

Second was that I should steer clear of calling matches as there is an obvious hex that I put on them.

 

 

 

 

Cilic to win in 3

[Say What Again]

Some QF on just now between Djokovic & Tsonga. just went into a 5th set after 6-7, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6.

[Say What Again]

Djokovic broken first. 2-0 Tsonga in the final set.

[scott_jambo]

I'm going to tip Djokovic to win it

 

 

Been waiting ages to do that!

 

I on the other hand tipped Federer the whole time...

[Gavsy Van Gaverson]

Been waiting ages to do that!

 

I on the other hand tipped Federer the whole time...

 

What an absolutely astonishing prediction

[I P Knightley]

Some QF on just now between Djokovic & Tsonga. just went into a 5th set after 6-7, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6.

 

Interesting to read that Djokovic when off for a chunder.

 

Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Remember Oor Andy just letting it go courtside at the US Open in '07? That's how you do it. Carried on and won the match, iirc.

 

If Murray wins, I think he takes over 3rd spot in the world rankings. If not, I think it'll be 2 or 3 tournies before he does.

[Gavsy Van Gaverson]

Interesting to read that Djokovic when off for a chunder.

 

Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Remember Oor Andy just letting it go courtside at the US Open in '07? That's how you do it. Carried on and won the match, iirc.

 

If Murray wins, I think he takes over 3rd spot in the world rankings. If not, I think it'll be 2 or 3 tournies before he does.

 

Roddick also spewed like a man. He spewed in a bucket during the change of ends in a Davis Cup match and continued as nothing had happened. Real men spew wherever they want to

 

If Murray beats Cilic he's No.3 in the world. If he wins the tournie he's No.2.

[Prince Buaben]

When is Murray v Cilic??

 

Is it tomorrow morning or Friday morning??

[269miles]

When is Murray v Cilic??

 

Is it tomorrow morning or Friday morning??

 

Defo Thursday , don't know what time though.

[Prince Buaben]

hopefully something like 7 or 8am!!

[Ignoranus]

Scheduled for an 8.30 start. AM here in the UK of course

[Martin]

The difference between Murray/Roddick and Djokovic's warrior spirit was shown in the puke stakes

 

Not hugely surprised about Djokovic. Tsonga has a good record against him and Djokovic had such an easy path through which probably went against him. There's always something when he loses though, going way back to the start of his career. Not convinced about him in Grand Slams as well, he's not even made a final since he won in Australia two years ago.

 

Federer's match seemed completely mad. With the way it turned out though, again it showed that Davydenko isn't Grand Slam material, he's just not tough enough for it.

 

Should be a Murray-Federer final now.

[djf]

Bit of a dilemma. I've not managed to catch any of Andy's matches yet and he's sailed through but i'm off tomorrow. Really want to watch but definitely worried ill jinx him.

[graygo]

Bit of a dilemma. I've not managed to catch any of Andy's matches yet and he's sailed through but i'm off tomorrow. Really want to watch but definitely worried ill jinx him.

 

Don't tell him you're watching... sorted!!

[I P Knightley]

The difference between Murray/Roddick and Djokovic's warrior spirit was shown in the puke stakes

 

Not hugely surprised about Djokovic. Tsonga has a good record against him and Djokovic had such an easy path through which probably went against him. There's always something when he loses though, going way back to the start of his career. Not convinced about him in Grand Slams as well, he's not even made a final since he won in Australia two years ago.

 

Federer's match seemed completely mad. With the way it turned out though, again it showed that Davydenko isn't Grand Slam material, he's just not tough enough for it.

 

Should be a Murray-Federer final now.

 

Next up's a game of soggy biscuit between Murray and Roddick to find out who's the real men's #1

 

I read that Djokovic has retired out of 7 tournies; 4 of them Grand Slam events.

 

Reading between the lines of Tsonga's interview, I took it that the players aren't all that keen on Djoko and realise that he'll pull stunts to mess with others' minds. Just watched a little bit of the highlights - 18 ball bounces for his first serve; 13 for his second. I'd get round the net and spank him for that.

[shaun.lawson]

Next up's a game of soggy biscuit between Murray and Roddick to find out who's the real men's #1

 

I read that Djokovic has retired out of 7 tournies; 4 of them Grand Slam events.

 

Reading between the lines of Tsonga's interview, I took it that the players aren't all that keen on Djoko and realise that he'll pull stunts to mess with others' minds. Just watched a little bit of the highlights - 18 ball bounces for his first serve; 13 for his second. I'd get round the net and spank him for that.

 

Indeed. A couple of years back, I watched Djokovic and thought he had a beautifully complete game, and a warrior spirit when he fell behind. His impersonations were seriously amusing too! But rival players began to take umbrage to the apparent disrespect within, his cockiness crossed the fine line into out and out arrogance, he made an absolute tit of himself in a post-match interview after beating Roddick at the US Open (resulting in the crowd booing and jeering him), and his constant injuries and retirements have become more and more bizarre.

 

That's the last time I'm backing him to win a Grand Slam. As Martin said, he's suspect in these events now. Compare and contrast his excuses with how Nadal - whose whole career could be under threat - handled what happened against Murray. There's huge mutual respect there, and Rafa really wants him to go on and do it. And it has to be said, he has a fantastic chance: it's hardly now or never for Andy, but something will have to go very seriously wrong for a tired Cilic to beat him, he'd be clear favourite in a final against Tsonga, and a showdown with Federer would be 50-50 I'd say.

 

Murray stands two steps away from ending the long wait; and providing Scottish sport with its finest hour since I don't know when.

[Bigsmak]

GAME ON

 

Holds his opening serve easy and has a couple breaks in the second game... Its early but he looks like he is focused!

 

1 game all.. This could be a long match if the opening points are anything to go by!

[Arse 'Friends' Dyslexic?]

I'm not liking the look of this.

 

Very similar exchanges to their US Open match.

[Everybody loves Baz]

Stuck ?30 on Murray to win 3-1 ??

 

Think it may go to to a decider now though

[chester copperpot]

I'm not liking the look of this.

 

Very similar exchanges to their US Open match.

 

IMO he's playing exactly the same as he did against cilic at the us open. He won't beat him playing like this.

[Bigsmak]

IMO he's playing exactly the same as he did against cilic at the us open. He won't beat him playing like this.

 

I am knackered watching this! lol

[Geoff Kilpatrick]

Humped in the first set!

[Bigsmak]

6-3 .. Cilic..

 

Murray should be kicking himself!

[Martin]

Poor stuff so far from Murray. Far too passive and not taking the break points early cost him.

[chester copperpot]

I am knackered watching this! lol

 

he blasted nasal off the court last match and he's playing ultra defensive here. Why he doesn't go for his shots like against nasal is beyond me.

 

Edit nasal, blast this bloody iPod things.

[Everybody loves Baz]

Right now Murray, 3 sets on the bounce and i'm a ?100 better off.

 

Simples.

[Ignoranus]

Does Murray have the fight to come back and win this? Federer showed he has against Davydenko. Come on MURRAY!!