THERE was a rare moment of self congratulation from Andy Murray at Roland Garros on Monday when he basked in the quiet glow of booking his 17th consecutive Grand Slam quarter final.
The World No 3 overcame home favourite Jeremy Chardy by a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Court Suzanne Lenglen to secure his fifth appearance in the French Open last eight, a feat which puts him amongst some seriously exalted company. The 28-year-old sits fourth on the all-time open era list for successive appearances at this stage in majors which they have played, behind just Roger Federer (36), Jimmy Connors (27) and Novak Djokovic (24).
"As I have said a lot over the last five, six months unfortunately, I'm playing against guys that make some of the things I have done look pretty average because of how good they have been," said the Scot. "Roger went through a period where he was making Grand Slam finals pretty much consistently then he had the semi-final streak which was ridiculous as well. His quarter-final streak was something like 30-odd. So in comparison to that it's nothing but in terms of the history of the game, there aren't loads of players who have been that consistent at these events. So that's something I look at and I'm very, very proud of. I'm glad I've managed to maintain that consistency even when I've had some tough periods over the last couple of years with the injuries and the back."
The man he will face there, No 7 seed David Ferrer from Spain, is an opponent he has never defeated on clay in three attempts, including a four-set defeat at this stage here in 2012. But should Murray be victorious on Wednesday, the 15-match run he has compiled since marrying Kim at Dunblane Cathedral in April will equal the finest of his entire pro career.
"I'm sure both of us will have changed and probably improved since that time," said Murray of that 2012 meeting in Paris. "I feel like I have a better understanding of how I need to play on this surface than I did back then, probably.
"David is a fantastic player on all of the surfaces," he added. "But on this surface he's for sure of one of the top four or five players in the world. The higher ranked players you play, the less opportunities they give you, the less mistakes they give you, especially in important moments. Maybe someone who is more inexperienced may rush at certain moments or make bad decisions. That's not something David does. So I'm going to have to work extremely hard in that match and be very patient and try to dictate the play as much as I can."
Murray was a break down in the third set against the World No 45, with a patriotic Parisian crowd in full voice, but the Scot said he was never genuinely fearful. "I wasn't overly concerned," added the 28-year-old. "Throughout the match I was creating many more opportunities than him."
Only briefly did the Scot require to give himself a telling off, but he did admonish himself for using too many swear words when the microphone was nearby. "It's one of the mistakes I make as a human being, and I try to be better," he said. "But with tennis it gets picked up on a lot. Often when we go for our towels, the microphone is right there and you forget where you are sometimes. Whereas in some of the other sports, like football for example, I don't think that the language they use is that pleasant all the time, but obviously the camera and microphone is not on them all of the time so you don't hear it as much."
Ferrer said that he felt Murray had improved his game considerably on clay. "It seems he's much more aggressive," said Ferrer. "When he uses the different shots he has to play, he's one of the best players, in the top 3, I'd say. He's more aware of what's happening. Not just on quick surfaces, but also on clay. He's much more serene and calm."
Chardy took issue with Murray's assertion that he had everything in hand. "During the match there were moments when I thought he was doubting and he was not feeling that well," said the Frenchman. "He started panicking a little."
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