Andy Murray says he needs to stay solid and wait for the errors against the dangerous Alexandr Dolgopolov in tonight's Australian Open quarter-final.
Murray has showcased his very best tennis so far in this tournament, delighting his many fans in Melbourne. He made world number eleven Jurgen Melzer look distinctly average in the last round but he knows he will need to adapt his game to deal with the unorthodox Dolgopolov.
The Ukrainian comes from a strong tennis pedigree. His father used to coach former French Open finalist Andrei Medvedev and Dolgopolov looks set to make his own mark on the tennis map. He has enjoyed a dream run so far, stunning Robin Soderling in a five setter on Monday.
“I know a little bit about him. I played him once before. He's got a very unorthodox game, very different to most of the guys on the tour,” Murray analyzed. “He's starting to put everything together. He's playing well, taking chances. He has a game that can make you play strange shots or, you know, not play that well. So you need to play, you know, as solid as you can against him 'cause if you start playing sort of inconsistent, a bit up and down, that's when he plays his best.”
“If you can keep making a lot of balls, chase everything down, not give him many free points, I think he can start to miss.”
Dolgopolov was under no illusions about the size of the challenge he faces against Murray. “It will certainly be a tough match because he stays in the rallies, he really sees the ball well," he said.
"It's tough to hit winners against him. It will be a tough, physical match and I will have to play really solidly to beat that kind of player. He doesn't give you any cheap points. He has a good serve and if you start to play slowly, he starts to crank up the rhythm and hits winners. If you risk too much, you miss. He's an uncomfortable player to play.”
