Murray, Djokovic win their opener in London – 2012 WTF – Youtube

The 2 big guys win their opener in the Round of Death!

Nole and Andy snapped a crucial win in their first match so as to set up a nice position in the most difficult round of the WTF.

Murray – Berdych 3-6 6-3 6-4

Andy had a very nervous start of the match for 2 reasons: first it was the first time he was playing in London after his US Open triumph; second Berdych was playing really well. So the opener ended 6-3 for Tomas that was particularly good in saving 7 break points out of 7 (while Murray saved only 1 out of 2).

In the second set Murray woke up to find his best tennis. Everything started when he survived 3 break points on a 1-1 scoreline. Then Murray managed to hold serve and break Berdych in the following game. Then the match changed. And the Scott won the second and third set in style.

“The noise and the atmosphere at the beginning of the match was great,” said Murray. “I thought I started the match well. I just didn’t quite take my chances early on. Both of us I thought served pretty well weren’t losing too many points on our first serve. It can hinge on a couple points here or there. Getting the break for a 3-1 lead gave me the advantage in the second set. But the third set was tight as well.” 

Djokovic – Tsonga 7-6 (4) 6-3

It’s Nole time once again! The world no.1 had to work hard against the 2011 WTF finalist. The crucial part of the match was the first set where Nole saved 3 break points out of 3 (Tsonga didn’t concede any) to win the opener at the tiebreak.

The second set was a bit more comfortable as Nole grabbed an early 2-0 lead to then break Tsonga again and win 6-3.

“The opening set obviously could have gone either way,” said Djokovic. “To be quite honest, he was the better player throughout the first set. I faced many break points, and I didn’t have any in the opening set. I managed to serve well, play well, stay mentally tough, and tried to fight my way through.”