The Scot defeated Ukrainian 95th ranked Marchenko 7-5 7-6 6-2 in a straightforward opener
ANDY MURRAY proved again today what the difference is between the best and the rest in any sport.
The best can afford to be off the boil now and again and still win.
The rest? They simply can’t. A truth that branded itself on Ukrainian journeyman Illya Marchenko’s brain as fiercely as the searing Melbourne sun fries unprotected skin.
The guy gave his lot out there and then some. He produced shots miles above his world No93 ranking, stood his ground for as long as possibly could, made the Wimbledon champion sweat for every single point.
The Wimbledon champ, in turn, played miles below his No1 status and evaporated nearly as much energy yelling at himself to wake up and start performing as he did chasing around Rod Laver Arena.
From the very first game, when he racked up THREE double faults to hand Marchenko a gift of a break, Murray simply wasn’t himself. Yet as we see when David meets Goliath in football, cricket, rugby and more, when the talent doesn’t quite kick in, the will to win takes over.
And so, for all the scowling and the cursing and the yelling into thin air that accompanied each wayward shot – and boy, was there lots of it – the 29-year-old Scot still came through in straight sets to set up a clash with Russian qualifier Sergey Rublev.
That’s the dispiriting thing for Marchenko. That he might never play better against opposition this good, yet he still never got close.
Murray? He came away knowing he HAS to play better if he’s to get anywhere near his sixth Aussie final.
After applauding Marchenko off court, he said: “The ranking doesn’t change anything – there’s still the same pressure, I still haven’t won the title here, so I still have to work to try and go one better.
“At the end of last year it felt great to finally reach No1. The last few months were really touch physically and mentally and I needed a break to enjoy it and switch off.
“With the guys who’ve been around since I came on the scene 12 years ago – Rafa, Roger and Novak, three of the greatest players ever – it’s been tough. I’ve just tried to keep getting better and having those guys around has helped me a lot.”
That opening game of his campaign set an incredibly sloppy tone for much of the two hours and 47 minutes that followed.
Three doubles? Unheard of. Add in two sloppy approach shots from Murray and he’d been broken without the other guy actually winning a point.
He broke straight back and in the blink of an eye was 5-2 ahead, but somehow his concentration just wasn’t clicking and next thing it was 5-5, each point that slipped away accompanied by pointing and barking at his coaches and family courtside, as if there was anything they could do about it.
As Marchenko sensed his chance, Murray scowled and growled to himself, sometimes bawling what teetered between encouragement and threats, never happy in his own skin.
At 6-5 up, he forced the Ukrainian into two mistakes that earned a break and sealed the set. That’ll settle him, you thought. But you were wrong, because he was broken again in the third game of the second, Don’t Worry Be Happy playing over the stadium tannoy while Murray howled: “Wake up!”
As he got back out of his chair after the changeover, he looked up at his box and shouted: “It’s a Grand Slam, guys, come on – come on!”
Again, like they could up THEIR game.
It’s all just part of Murray’s complex in-game psyche, though, this need to beat up not only himself but everyone who shares his life. It gets him through sticky spells like these – and sure enough, from 3-1 down he made it back to 4-4 and even though Marchenko hung on to force a tiebreak, you could sense the tide turning towards the superstar and energy ebbing from the underdog.
The moment it went to 2-0, you visibly watched Marchenko wilt. His arm began to tighten on serve, his returns weren’t just as accurate, he looked slower around the blue rubber surface.
And at that, you also saw another trait of the top sporting dogs; the innate ability to gain strength from the other guy’s weakness.
For the first time all afternoon, Murray began to look like he was on it. The shots got freer, the limbs looser, one break of serve followed another.
He’d got through, which in the end is all that mattered.Because the record books don’t show who played out of his skin and who was way below par, only that it finished up 3-0.
