- Stan Wawrinka [16] def. Andy Murray [WC] 6-1 6-3 6-2
- Murray will try and play as much as possible before season ends
PARIS, FRANCE – Three and a half years after playing a match with sent them both into injury layoffs, Stan Wawrinka coasted past Andy Murray.
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Stan Wawrinka [16] def. Andy Murray [WC] 6-1 6-3 6-2
It was one of the matches that was earmarked as a marquee match – a rematch between two veterans of the tour, after the match that ‘broke’ them both. However, the rematch did not pan out as the thriller everyone hoped it would be as Stan Wawrinka coasted past Andy Murray in straight sets.
Having hit on court together earlier in the week, the cold and heavy conditions were better dealt with by Wawrinka at the start, who took the lead with a break after 20 minutes of hard play for the first three games.
However, after that it seemed to be very plain sailing for the Swiss, who broke twice more in the first set before a more competitive second set. A loose game saw Wawrinka nudge ahead once more before he comfortably took the second set.
Breaking Murray right at the start of the third set, and in the penultimate game, it summed up the match as Murray looked flat, struggling for pace off his serve, and at times although he was moving well, he was made to look slow.
After the match, Murray admitted that he had to play better. He told reporters: “In the States, [I] was getting quite frustrated in my matches. It was something that was brought up to me, and I tried to sort of keep my emotions in check on the court.
“I don’t know whether that affected me in any way or not, but that was probably why it was quieter than usual. I was trying to be a little bit calmer on the court.
“Today was obviously an extremely tough draw. Even if I played very well, you know, it would have been no guarantees that I win that match.
“But I also didn’t play well. You know, I served like under 40% first serves in the court, which that’s just not good enough, really, against anyone, and especially someone as good as Stan. You want to be serving in the 60%, that sort of region. That’s just not good enough.”
He confirmed there was no physical issue with his hip that hindered his performance but agreed that he would need to look back over the match in some detail.
He continued: “It’s not for me the sort of match I would just brush aside and not give any thought to. There [are] obviously reasons behind a performance kind of like that. You know, I think that’s probably in terms of score-line, I might be wrong, but I think that’s the worst defeat maybe of my career in a Grand Slam.
“I should be analysing that hard and trying to understand why the performance was like that.”
The ATP tour will move into the European indoor season, and Murray has every intention of continuing to rack up the match play.
He added: “Tournament-wise I’m going to try to play as much as I can between now and the end of the year. The plan is to play in Cologne, the two tournaments there. Probably the only positive of today is I will get more time to prepare on the indoor hard courts for that.”
The bett1HULKS Indoors in Cologne starts on 12 October.
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