THE best lessons are often the most painful.

This sentiment is not derived entirely from the life and works of the Marquis de Sade. It has some relevance when applied to the unexpected defeat suffered by a leading sportsman. The experience of Andy Murray in the Beijing Olympics was short and brutal. It has left its mark. The Scot was defeated by Lu Yen-Hsun in the first round. His Olympic experience had dissolved in the humidity of China.

Five years on, Olympic gold medallist Murray faces the man who defeated him on that day. He has not forgotten Lu or the lesson he learned. "I had just won Cincinnati and this is going to sound like an excuse but it is the reality," Murray said. "We arrived late and it was tough conditions. I was so excited to be part of the Olympics that I went to the opening ceremony and was sweating so much. I wanted to meet all the other athletes and basically enjoy the whole experience and forgot a little bit that I was there to win tennis matches." He lost 7-6, 6-4.

Murray's next Olympic experience ended with him winning the final in London, defeating Roger Federer in straight sets. "I was determined to put that to bed, that I had messed up a little bit. I learned a lot from that match," he said.

The 26-year-old Scot now journeys deep towards the business end of major tournaments. The last time he lost in the first round of a grand slam was to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga five years ago and the Frenchman subsequently made the final in Australia, where he lost to Novak Djokovic. Murray negotiated a smooth passage to the second round on Monday when he defeated Benjamin Becker in three sets on an afternoon when Rafael Nadal lost to Steve Darcis, the world No.135.

When questioned about the ease with which he defeated Becker, Murray replied: "When you are on the court, none of the matches feel like that. You do not think: 'I am two sets up and cruising; this is feeling comfortable.' These guys are really, really good players. The result may seem comfortable but it certainly does not feel it on the court."

But he conceded his had become more focused with experience. "I have got better over the last few years at just being ready for the first match, having my head on and not playing a bad first set or getting off to a slow start. That is maybe why some of the results at the beginning of slams have been better," he said.

As well as recalling the match with Lu, Murray remembered that defeat in Melbourne in 2008. "Tsonga was a tough match. Those are the sort of things you learn from. He was two years older and has gone on to become one of the best in the world. You never know, whoever it is you are playing against, they may be ready to shoot up the rankings. One big result on a big court and they are flying up there," he said.

He added: "You have to make sure you are ready. Rafa's result is a perfect example of that. You just can't take anything for granted."

Murray knows he was potentially in line to meet the Spaniard in the semi-finals but is also aware that the last four is a long voyage from the first round and anything can happen en route. The experience of Nadal is an unnecessary reminder of that truth. "I'm sure there will be people writing Rafa off left, right and centre because he lost, but that happens sometimes. He'll be back," said Murray.

Nadal moved sluggishly against the vibrant Darcis and Murray said: "I've no idea how bad his knee is and whether it affected him, but I'm sure the thing he found really difficult was that this year he's played predominantly on clay."

Murray won at Queen's on grass; Nadal pulled out of Halle, so he came straight from the clay to play a player, the Scot pointed out, who is proficient on grass. "Darcis beat Tomas Berdych in the first round of the Olympics here last year, so he likes this surface," said Murray.

The meeting with Lu, who is ranked 75th in the world, prompted Murray to reflect on the rising game in Asia, which was underlined by the performance of Kei Nishikori, the Japanese 12th seed who defeated Matthew Ebden in straight sets.

Asked if Asia could soon produce a major winner in the men's singles, Murray said: "I hope so. It would be good for the sport. Kei has done really well. He is close to the top 10 and would be the first Asian man to be in the top 10. Li Na has done well on the women's side and tennis has got much bigger in China because of that. The Japanese have had three or four guys in the top 100 at one time."

He added: "Yen-Hsun has been about for some time but if you look at the Challenger results there are more guys and their level is rising. I am sure than in 10, 15 years this will grow more and more."

For the moment, though, Murray is prepared. Lu is braced for a demanding afternoon.