Murray in easy win as Simon offers no resistance

Andy Murray was delighted to get past Gilles Simon in straight sets at the Australian Open yesterday after a fourth-round encounter he admitted “didn’t feel that competitive”.

With Simon struggling physically following his five-set marathon against Gael Monfils at the weekend, the match had a strange feel.

Murray was able to play well within himself, knowing second gear was likely to be enough against an opponent who had little realistic chance of winning.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The world No 3 duly completed a 6-3 6-1 6-3 win to move on to a last-eight encounter with another Frenchman, Jeremy Chardy, whose run in Melbourne continued with a four-set defeat of Andreas Seppi.

“It was tough,” said Murray. “A tough situation for both players, more so obviously for him.

“After the first few games it didn’t feel that competitive. At this stage of a grand slam you’re geed up and prepared for a tough battle.

“That’s why it becomes hard because the emotions aren’t quite into it. You’re not necessarily feeling pressure but you’re wanting to try to finish the match as quickly as possible.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It was hard to gauge the performance given his opponent’s limitations but Murray will be pleased to have made it this far without overly exerting himself.

The match was in stark contrast to title rival Novak Djokovic’s five-hour struggle against Stanislas Wawrinka on Sunday and the Scot will be hoping his relatively easy route through the bottom half of the draw will prove an advantage in the challenges which lie ahead.

Murray was pleased to have spent just 95 minutes on Hisense Arena in advancing to his ninth successive grand slam quarter-final.

“I think it was always going to be that way,” he added.

“I felt after the first few games, because he wasn’t serving hard at all, his forehand side wasn’t moving that well either (that) it was just about trying to finish the match as quickly as I could and then getting ready for the next one.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Simon had almost four hours of treatment after the Monfils match and he conceded his physical condition meant he had little chance of improving a record which now stands at one win from 11 meetings with Murray.

“It was difficult for me, but I knew that before,” he said.

“It was a painful hour and a half on the court. But Andy is a very good player anyway so it’s always very hard to beat him.

“Without being 100 per cent you have almost no chance.”

Second seed Roger Federer reached his 35th consecutive grand slam quarter-final with a straight-sets victory over Canada’s Milos Raonic.

Federer, seeking a fifth Melbourne title, took a while to get to grips with his big-serving opponent before running out a convincing 6-4 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 winner in one hour and 54 minutes.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Swiss star, who has yet to drop a set in the tournament, will face seventh seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the last eight after the Frenchman beat compatriot 
Richard Gasquet in four sets in their fourth-round clash.

Tsonga famously beat Federer in the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 2011, the first time Federer had lost a grand slam match from two sets up.

“He is a good guy with a great game, he is a great shot-maker and a great character for the game,” Federer said of Tsonga.

“We didn’t play each other last year, I don’t think, and the year before we played three times in 10 days.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We just came from a trip in South America, played a couple of exhibition matches against each other which was a lot of fun and now we’re going to try to bring it here to centre court and I am really looking forward to that.”

The first nine games of the match went with serve, but 13th seed Raonic was the first to blink and a double fault gifted Federer a set point which he accepted as Raonic netted a backhand volley.

Federer had amazingly made just one unforced error throughout the set and although much is often made of Raonic’s powerful serve, the 31-year-old was more than holding his own in that department.

Just nine points were lost on serve in the second set – Federer dropping only two – and a tie-break was required to decide the outcome.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Raonic produced aces with his first three serves, but Federer was simply waiting patiently for his opportunity and seized it with a backhand winner down the line as Raonic came into the net.

An ace of his own gave Federer three set points and he took the second with a forehand winner.

That seemed to break Raonic’s spirit and Federer broke serve twice early in the third set on his way to a convincing victory.

Tsonga was too strong for his friend Gasquet. The ninth seed hit back from losing the opening set but was powerless to prevent Tsonga from running away with it 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-2.

Serena plays down any ‘mentoring’ of teenager Stephens

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Serena Williams has dismissed suggestions she has taken on a mentoring role to Australian Open quarter-final opponent Sloane Stephens.

The pair set up an all-American last-eight clash in Melbourne yesterday with contrasting wins.

Williams maintained her blistering form with a 6-2 6-0 annihilation of Maria Kirilenko while Stephens struggled to a 6-1 3-6 7-5 win over Bojana Jovanovski.

And while some observers have claimed Williams is playing a role in overseeing Stephens’s progress, the world No 3 insists she is nothing more than an interested spectator in the 19-year-old’s career.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I would need a better definition of the word mentor,” she said. “I just feel like the older one and maybe some of the younger players look up to me.

“It’s hard to be a real mentor when you’re still in competition.

“I don’t feel any responsibility (towards her). I doubt she has any expectations of me to be responsible for anything. Maybe she does. I don’t know.”

Stephens has been tipped to follow in the Williams sisters’ footsteps and become the next great black player to emerge from the US. And Williams was impressed when they met two weeks ago in Brisbane.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I took a lot from that match,” she said of the 6-4 6-3 win.

“She plays well. Like I said after the match, she can be the greatest player. I feel like it will be another good match and a good opportunity for both of us. One of us will definitely be in the semi-finals which is awesome.”

Victoria Azarenka is ready for some “top battles” as she bids to defend her title here – starting with a tricky-looking quarter-final against Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Azarenka breezed through her last-16 encounter with Elena Vesnina, winning 6-1 6-1 in 57 minutes. But Kuznetsova is a different proposition.

“I think it’s going to be a very tough match,” said top seed Azarenka.

Kuznetsova beat former world No 1 Caroline Wozniacki, winning 6-2 2-6 7-5.