Andy Murray is looking to turn around a relatively poor 1-3 record against Tomas Berdych when the two men meet in the quarter-final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship on Thursday.
The world No.4 has lost his last three meetings to Berdych most recently a tight three-setter in Bercy, Paris last November, and he hasn’t beaten the Czech since 2005. But Murray insists he likes playing big-hitters like Berdych despite all that.
“I’ve always enjoyed playing guys that are big-hitters. That’s his game. I’ll have to try and find a way of neutralising that by getting the first hit in the rallies, using a lot variety in my game,” said Murray. “He can make mistakes, but you need to force him into doing that. He’s not just going to give you that. If you leave the ball in the middle of the court, he hits the ball very, very well.”
Berdych, who made the semi-finals in Dubai last year before being forced to retire against Novak Djokovic in the final set, excels on the fast surfaces but he has also beaten Murray at Roland Garros in 2010, on a rainy day when the conditions were as slow as can be.
Murray believes however he can take advantage of some loopholes in the No.5 seed’s game. “Some guys that hit a big ball lack time. I’ve played him on many different surfaces. And sometimes on the slow courts I remember when I played him at French Open it was incredibly slow, and that suited him maybe better than it would have done for me.
“I think if you can hit the ball well against him on a court like this, I think he can make mistakes. I think he does lack time on the ball. But also, if he’s serving huge and getting the first hit in the rallies, then it’s very difficult to play him.”
Meanwhile Berdych, who is yet to hit on Centre Court this week having played both his matches on the outside courts, refuses to count on his positive record lead over Murray and knows he is in for a tough battle. “The statistics are one thing, and what’s going to happen on court is another,” said the former Wimbledon finalist.
“When I saw the draw I was really pointing my finger to this match, that I would like to get there and to play with Andy, because the matches like this, it’s always great. That’s why I play tennis. And to face him in the quarters, it’s a nice challenge to go. The last one we played together was a really, really tough one and a really good match. So I’m looking forward to that.”
The 26-year-old has had a phenomenal start to the 2012 season with a quarter-final showing in Australia, a title win in Montpellier and a semi-final appearance in Rotterdam all under his belt, and Berdych admits it’s his best season start in his 10-year career.
“The start of the season was very different than the years before that,” he said. “It was close by the last year, or end of the last year which was very busy. So preparation and the start of the year was different. But actually, it was a good choice to do it. It was a stronger start. Actually strongest I ever had. So, yeah, I’m healthy. Hopefully it’s going to stay for a whole season and I will be able to go week by week and get some good results.”
