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Andy Murray distances himself from British failings
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Your support makes all the difference.Andy Murray was quick to distance himself from British tennis' latest let-down after securing his place in the second round of the Australian Open.
The Scot overcame big-hitting Ryan Harrison in four sets in Melbourne to do what a quintet of his compatriots failed to do on Monday and advance past round one.
Being the last Briton standing at a grand slam is a familiar scenario for the world number four and he hinted officials at the Lawn Tennis Association, and not him, should be looking at where it went wrong.
He said: "I'm not the person to be disappointed about that. There are other people in charge that should be disappointed about it, not me.
"I mean, I'd rather there were more Brits winning, obviously, but it's not for me to be disappointed."
Murray was not at his best against American Harrison, but his know-how came to the fore once he had weathered an early storm to secure a 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-2 success on Hisense Arena.
It was his first match at a major in tandem with new coach Ivan Lendl and he revealed the Czech eight-time major winner had been delighted with his display.
He said: "He was very happy.
"He understands how you might be feeling at the start of a grand slam, what it's like to play against someone that you haven't played against, what it's like playing in different conditions, how you feel in really warm conditions.
"It's just good to have someone there that understands all of those things.
"Someone maybe without the experience might walk in and be like, 'what the hell were you doing in the first set? What were you playing at in the first six or seven games?'
"He understands the feelings that you go through. Once I started moving better, I played better and the last few sets were good."
Murray, who also played down concerns over his left hamstring despite twice clutching it after chasing wide balls, admitted he knows little of second-round opponent, Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin.
"I don't know much about him but he is playing the best tennis of his career," he said. "I am going to have to play well to beat him."
Vasselin yesterday profited from opponent Xavier Malisse retiring at the end of the first set.
"I don't know what happened to Malisse but Vasselin is going to be fresh," said Murray.
PA
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