Andy Murray wins - then predicts 'tough, tough' second round

Andy Murray raced to a straight-sets victory before the rains fell at Wimbledon yesterday '“ then forecast that he'll face a 'tough, tough' '¨challenge next time out.

Andy Murray salutes the crowd after beating fellow Briton Liam Broady on Centre Court. Picture: Glyn Kirk/Getty Images

The Scot beat Englishman Liam Broady 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 to move on to the second round, where he’ll come up against Lu Yen-hsun, the Taiwanese who beat Murray at the 
Beijing Olympics.

Murray said: “He’s won ten, 11 matches in a row coming here.

“He made the quarter-finals at Wimbledon before and beat [Andy] Roddick. He plays very well on grass. It will be a really, really tough match, and a 
good test for me early in the event. I’ll need to perform well in that one.”

The No 2 seed was satisfied with his play in the win over Broady, which he wrapped up in one hour 43 minutes.

“I hit the ball pretty clean and offensively I was good,” he added. “Maybe I could have moved a little bit better
– I didn’t defend as well as 
usual – but I served well and that got me out of any difficult situations. It was mission accomplished.”

It was the first time Murray had played a fellow Brit in SW19, the first game back at Wimbledon for the reactivated partnership with super-coach Ivan Lendl and it was also notable for being the courtside debut of his baby daughter Sophia.

Asked how she enjoyed the experience, Murray replied: “I don’t know, I haven’t seen her since I came off so I’m not sure – and she’ll be in bed by the time I get back.”

She’ll make a return, though. “I aim to have as much contact [with her] as I can during the tournament,” added Murray.

He was asked about England’s shock Euro 2006 defeat by Iceland. Having been tripped up by football questions in the past – notably when he jokingly remarked that he wanted “anyone but England” to win the 2006 World Cup – he said: “It was obviously a surprising result but they happen in sport when underdogs perform well and win. At the highest level if you don’t perform then upsets can happen.”

So, can the tennis underdog Marcus Willis – unlikely homegrown hero of the opening day – beat Roger Federer in the second round?

“Anyone can beat anyone. Amazing things do happen,” said Murray. “Obviously Roger is a massive, massive favourite and I would expect him to win fairly comfortably but Marcus is pretty old-school. He serve and volleys a lot. The advice I’d give him would be to go out and enjoy it. I’m sure he will. He’s got a great personality and he’s great fun to watch.”