Andy Murray will get his campaign underway in Brisbane with a first round matchup against Mikhail KukushkinYou can watch and bet on Murray v Kukushkin live for free at bet365 > live tennisAndy Murray has big ambitions for 2012, and a slam title will certainly be on the Scot’s ‘to do’ list this season. Approaching the Australian Open, which Murray has finished as a runner-up in twice, conversations about Murray’s ability to win a slam will inevitably be on the agenda once again. Now that he’s teamed up with new coach Ivan Lendl, many pundits are wondering if this is going to be his year.
Lendl, a world renowned tennis legend, is new to coaching. However, he appears to be the perfect match for Murray at this point in his career. The Czech lost his first four slam finals, but finished his career with eight slam titles to his name.
"To me this is like Groundhog Day – I have been in this movie," remarked Lendl in a recent interview. "I was that player once, who needed something to help make it work, it was the same as I was before I hired Rochey [Tony Roche]. What happened then changed my career around."
Lendl hasn’t had much time to work with Murray yet, but it will be intriguing to see if Britain’s No. 1 takes a different approach to his tennis when he steps on court against Mikhail Kukushkin on Tuesday at the Brisbane International. Murray is the top seed here, and is expected to breeze through. Unless Kukushkin plays like a man possessed, we can expect to see the Murray/Lendl partnership get off to a winning start.
