Andy Murray faces second round Australian Open opponent who he has never heard of
MOST of us realise we are getting on a bit when policemen start looking young.
For Andy Murray, it was the first time he came out of the hat to face a tennis rival he had never heard of.
The world No 1 has always prided himself on his geeky knowledge of the game.
Yet after beating Ukrainian journeyman Illya Marchenk in the Australian Open first round, Murray’s next challenger is a total MYSTERY.
So now, still four months off turning 30, Murray is scrambling for video footage of Andrey Rublev — the 19-year-old son of a former Soviet army boxing champ.
The Scot, 29, said: “Now I’m married and have a daughter, I have a lot less time to watch videos of matches than I used to.
“But it’s actually more important than ever because there are a lot of players I don’t know. For instance, I’ve never played against or even practised with Rublev.
“I’ve seen him once before, on TV against Mikhail Youzhny at the US Open a couple of years ago.
“He doesn’t hold back and hits a big ball. But with guys like him, all you can do is watch videos and work things out from there.
“It’s a lot different from when I first came on the tour, because then I literally knew everyone.
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4“I watched loads of tennis on TV as a kid, so I knew all the top players and I’d grown up with players in Futures or junior events.
“Now? There’s a bunch of guys I don’t know because of the generation gap, so it really matters that I study the guys I’m playing against.”
It is this attention to detail that tells you how Murray got to the top of the tree.
Rookie Rublev may be 156th in the world, with that one US Open rubber on his Grand Slam CV but nothing will be left to chance early tomorrow morning.
As a rusty Muzza eased past world No 95 Marchenko in Melbourne’s searing heat yesterday, you were reminded just how priceless every point is to him.
He regularly cursed himself for slackness, letting out yells of “Wake up!” and “It’s a Grand Slam, guys, come on!”
Yet his 7-5 7-6 6-2 victory proved the best can often afford to be off the boil and still get the job done.
The Scot, aiming for a first Aussie Grand Slam title after losing five finals, said: “Sometimes, especially in really testing conditions like here, you can be a bit flat energy-wise.
“You’re just trying to get through and finish the match quicker. I’ll try to find that bit extra next time.”
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