The odds of three British players who are not Andy Murray playing on Centre Court at Wimbledon three days in a row are about as long as a summer’s day – whatever that looks like.
But it has been an uplifting, if fleeting experience, to see James Ward and Liam Broady test their temperament on the game’s biggest stage on the first two days of the tournament – with the surprise package that is Marcus Willis making his grand entrance on Wednesday, against Roger Federer, no less.
Murray observed: “Who would have thought a few weeks ago he’d be in this position? So to get the opportunity to play against Roger, arguably the best male player of all time, currently on the court where he’s had his most success, it’s just an amazing opportunity for him.
“I’m sure he’ll have a great time out there. He’s got a great personality. He’s good fun to watch and listen to. I’m sure it will be entertaining.
“Anyone can beat anyone in the draw. Amazing things do happen in sport sometimes. Obviously Roger’s a massive, massive favourite, and I would expect him to win the match fairly comfortably.
“But Marcus’s game style, it’s pretty old-school. He serve-and-volleys a lot. He uses a lot of slice. He hits the ball fairly flat. He has great hands, great feel. That’s something that he’s always had really, ever since I [first] saw him play.”
All that said, Murray is still the leader of the pack and the way he broke down the stubborn resistance of the left-hander Broady in two hours and 42 minutes on Tuesday was a treat to behold – not that the loser will have appreciated it as much as the patrons did.
“I didn’t play like I was at home from the start, but I certainly felt like it,” Broady said later. “I think the longer the match went on, the more I focused on the tennis and stopped remembering where I was.
“By the end of the second, most of the third, it was just a match against another guy. But you’re still playing Andy Murray on Centre Court at Wimbledon. It’s very hard to get your head around that. We’re walking off the court, and he asked me if I enjoyed it. I was like, yeah, of course I did. I played Andy Murray on Centre Court, what can’t I enjoy? Obviously, I didn’t enjoy the losing part …”
Murray was satisfied with his start – such a stark contrast to his near-calamitous struggle at the beginning of the French Open last month, when he lost four sets in the first two matches against players he would normally dispatch with minimum fuss. It troubled Ivan Lendl – comfortably back in the players’ box after an absence of two years – and they have addressed the issue in depth.
“The French Open was tough for me,” Murray admitted. “I had a couple of long matches to start the tournament. I have also done it a lot of times in slams, where I have been quick in the first week, won the matches fairly quickly. I just need to try and understand why that’s been the case in the past, and hopefully I can have another good start here.”
It could hardly have been much better on Tuesday. After taking care of business against Broady, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4, Murray said: “I hit the ball pretty clean today. I think offensively I was good, felt like I could have moved a little bit better. I served a pretty high percentage, especially the first two sets. I didn’t give him many chances on my serve. When I was in difficult situations, I served well.”
That is always the key to Murray’s game at the highest level, because all the other components usually take care of themselves. He was ruthless in defence when Broady became aggressive in the third set, and his concentration was pin-sharp.
The winner got a good workout, the loser a cheque for £30,000 and his day in the sun – or gloom, as the clouds rolled in on Tuesday afternoon. As they headed for the locker room, the roof began to rumble into action, an appropriate drawing of the curtains.
Murray’s serve clicked, his groundstrokes buzzed and he moved like a gazelle, striking 31 clean winners from all parts to all parts. The final points difference, 95-64, told the story well enough although Broady fought all the way.
Murray’s opponent in the second round on Thursday will be the world No76 Lu Yen‑hsun, who defeated the Russian outsider Alexander Kudryavtsev 6-4, 6-1, 6-4 in an hour-and-a-half on Court 10. It was Lu who caught Murray napping at the Beijing Olympic Games eight years ago, one of the great disappointments of the Scot’s career. Lu is not a player Murray can easily forget.
“He’s played the three grass court Challengers in the buildup,” he said. “He’s won two of them and lost in the final of one. He’s won 11 matches in a row now coming in here. He’s made the quarters at this event before, beat Roddick once. He plays well on the grass.
“He’s been on the Challenger tour since he came back from injury a couple of months ago, and he won some Challengers over in Asia before the French Open as well. It will be a really, really tough match, and a good test for me early in the event.”
