When in Rome: David Ferrer beat Andy Murray in straight-sets Andy Murray suffered his fourth defeat in five matches last night, but at least his third-round exit from the Italian Open was not one of the horror shows he has produced over the past month.
The British No 1 was outrallied by Spaniard David Ferrer and lost 6-3, 6-4 to the world No 17, a supremely quick baseliner who dashes around the court like the Duracell bunny.
The scoreline does not make happy reading for Murray, but this was a far more purposeful performance from the world No 5 than in his defeats in Miami and two weeks ago in Monte Carlo.
He was not despondent, saying: 'This tournament has been a step in the right direction. I have felt much better this week.
Down and out: Murray reflects after losing a point 'I was striking the ball at a different level from how I had done in the last two matches. I'm disappointed to have lost but if I keep playing like that then I will start going deep into tournaments again.'
But his travails of late mean Murray's clay-court season could be over before it has properly begun. He is scheduled to play only at the Madrid Masters the week after next before the French Open, where he made the quarter-finals a year ago.
A repeat or better at Roland Garros looks far away, despite signs of improvement against the trickiest thi rd-round opponent possible. You know that facing a Spaniard on clay is likely to be hard work, but Ferrer is one of the last you would want to meet apart from Rafael Nadal at the moment, especially when your confidence is brittle.
It is a sign of the players' form that bookmakers ignored the disparity in rankings to make the Scot a clear underdog, drawing on Ferrer's excellent record on clay this year that has seen him reach the semi-finals in his two previous events.
Man on a mission: David Ferrer has been in good form on clay this season An avid reader who prides himself on finishing a book per week, Ferrer outlasted Murray in the longer rallies on the steep banked new Centre Court at the historic Foro Italico.
The 22-year-old Briton's first serve also let him down in the first set, Ferrer punishing his second delivery in the sixth game to go 4-2 up and bring winces from his compatriot, Alex Corretja, who is Murray's lead coach on clay.
But there was never any shortage of quality rallies, and it was to the Spaniard's credit that he hung in during the first half of the second set when Murray opened his shoulders and started looking more like the player who reached the Australian Open final three months ago.
At 3-2 down in the second set, Ferrer fought off a break point and then gained a decisive point of his own. Murray did not have the belief when it mattered and threw in unforced errors on crucial points.
The match was over in 96 minutes, leaving the British player searching for momentum ahead of Paris.
source: dailymail
