IT becomes more serious today.

The Andy Murray experience at Wimbledon in 2011 has been relatively straightforward with a stretch against Daniel Gimeno-Traver followed by a gentle workout against Tobias Kamke.

Ivan Ljubicic, 32-year-old Croat, poses a threat to the ambitions of the world No.4. It is not just that Ljubicic defeated Murray in their last meeting in China last year but that he has also been rated the world No.3, admittedly five years ago. He is a classy, experienced player with a shot at an upset. Murray, a competitor who thrives on challenge, will find this serious business a bit of fun. But it is only fun in a professional sense.

The 24-year-old is relaxed about how he earns his living but he has always maintained that it is not his reason for living. He was quietly philosophical about the length of his career. “It depends on when you are satisfied, what you are happy with,” he replied when asking how long he could stay on the ATP circuit. “If it comes a day in a year and I think I am really happy with what I have had and want to try something different then you do that. If it is in 10 years’ time, that day, you will do it. A lot of people look at guys and ask: ‘Why are they still playing?’ But so long as they are enjoying it they should go on doing it.”

This is far from a retirement statement but Murray only seeks a grand slam victory to embroider a successful career. Roger Federer, with 16 grand slams, said at the weekend that Murray would have “10 chances” to win Wimbledon. “It really depends on how your body holds up and if you are really enjoying the travelling and being on the tour. Then you are going to do it for as long as you can,” said Murray peering towards the future.

The circuit of 10 months of competition can take its toll, however, on body and mind.

“You still enjoy yourself but it is different,” said Murray. “Going and playing a tournament was once fun but you are now used to playing tournaments over and over again so you do other things at the tournament to make it fun. The guys that I travel with get on very well and I can enjoy spending time with them doing all different games that we play. The tennis is different. It is still fun but it is your job. You are trying to achieve something that is very difficult to do, so with that comes stress. But you need to enjoy it as much as you can.”

He was asked what his feeling was when he left the court, was it a sense of fun or of satisfaction? “It depends. At Queen’s, I really enjoyed that,” said the Scot who put on a masterclass against Andy Roddick and then defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in an entertaining final.

“Here it is a little bit different because of all the stuff you do, all the preparation, everything you put in in the gym or on the practice court is geared for these events. It is easy to say: ‘Go out and enjoy it’. But you have to very focused, you can not be thinking: ‘I am just going to have a laugh out here’.”

His appetite for sport and for competition was formed in childhood in Dunblane. His grandfather, Roy Erskine, joked this week that he taught young Andy everything he needed to know.

Murray, however. acknowledged a serious debt to his family. “We all lived very close to each other, probably a mile-and-a-half from my mum’s house to my granda’s house and in between were the tennis courts and the golf course. They lived on the second tee of the golf course so I use to go out an play golf with my granda and my gran. They used to come down and watch us on the tennis courts a little bit.”

He added: “Everyone in my family loved sport. My uncles, my aunties, my dad, my mum, Jamie, obviously, he was a good footballer, a single-digit handicapper at golf.”

His grandparents ferried both boys to sports practice when the parents were working. It formed a bond that endures to this day with the Ersksines being regulars at Wimbledon to watch both their grandsons.

The fun of sport is part of the family history. It forms a part in Murray’s pre-match build-up as he waits for a court to clear or for the rain to stop. He plays Playstation, but only sports games. He completes crosswords or has a game of table tennis.

And then he walks out for the serious stuff.

The intensity of his matches at Wimbledon is regularly interrupted with cries of ‘Come on, Tim’. This homage to the departed Hero of Henman has stretched Murray’s patience. “We were talking about it before my first match and asking how long it would be before the first ‘Come on, Tim’. I said within the first game. It came four minutes in,” said Murray.

“We were going to have a bet and everyone gave a minute when it would be said. I just said it would be inside the first game.”

He then employed an industrial does of sarcasm. “It is a classic that one. It is hilarious. It happens every match, three or four times,” he said.

In seriousness, Murray said: “I do not find it particularly amusing.” He faces a match today that offers a challenge and an opportunity. There may be limited capacity for fun but Murray seeks to satisfy his craving for victory and there is a profound pleasure in that.

MEN’S SINGLES Philosophical Murray knows how to mix business and pleasure as he prepares to meet a testing opponent in Ivan Ljubicic. Hugh MacDonald reports