TENNIS/US Open Championships: As Andrew Murray prepared for his US Open second-round match against Arnaud Clement of France today, Spain's Rafael Nadal, less than a year older than the Scot, eased into the last 32 with a 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 victory over the American wild card, Scoville Jenkins.
A year ago Nadal had never gone beyond the third round of a grand slam, and had one rather insignificant clay-court title to his name. Now, with Russia's Marat Safin having pulled out of the tournament with a knee injury before it began, and with Andy Roddick having slid to an ignominious first-round defeat, the 19-year-old Spaniard and world number two, is recognised as the man most likely to prevent Roger Federer defending his title.
Nadal has had an extraordinary eight months, taking the French Open after a semi-final victory over Federer and winning eight further titles, including the Montreal Masters two weeks ago, beating Andre Agassi in the final.
Those chasing down Federer, such as Lleyton Hewitt, are fond of placing the Swiss on a pedestal way above all the rest, while intimating that the pack are just about running abreast of each other. But this ignores the fact that, the Australian Open apart, the slams and all the seven Masters series to date this year have been won by either Nadal or Federer.
And so the lines have been drawn: it's Federer vs Nadal. All that is lacking is a long list of matches between the two. So far they have met only three times, with Nadal holding a 2-1 lead. But now that they are ranked number one and number two in the world the chances of such battles have increased, with every prospect they will meet in their first slam final here a week on Sunday.
Nadal practice sessions are fierce affairs and, although he felt he was not hitting the ball quite as he wanted to in his match, with a swirling wind making timing difficult, he was not too concerned. "It's often usual for me not to feel quite on top of my game in the early stages, but I know that when the big matches come along I will be fine."
Nadal is very much a boy in a man's body, whereas Murray, for all that he is gaining upper body strength, will clearly not develop in the same extraordinary way. Nonetheless his progress this year has been faster than most expected, and the match against Clement represents a significant mark.
"Arnaud is pretty small, so I think he's going to be consistent and quick around the court. I'm going to have to play a patient match, " said Murray.
"I will have to make sure that I wait for the right opportunity. It should be a fun match, but I am taller than him so I will probably hit the ball harder."
Murray's matches are almost always emotional, which clearly costs him much energy. It is something he recognises.
"I haven't been getting too fired-up at the start of the match, and getting tired too early, and that has been pleasing. I think some of the guys are starting to notice me."
Serena Williams reached the last 32 under the Arthur Ashe floodlights, thereby increasing the possibility of a fourth-round match against her elder sister, Venus.
Lindsay Davenport and Justine Henin-Hardenne did no more than was required. Two of the favourites for the women's title easily advanced to the third round despite failing to produce their best tennis against unheralded opponents. Second seed Davenport thrashed French qualifier Pauline Parmentier 6-1 6-1 while number seven Henin-Hardenne, the 2003 winner and reigning French Open champion, won 6-3 6-4 against Spain's Maria Sanchez Lorenzo.
The scoreline in Davenport's match was misleading. The American got only 49 per cent of her first serves in and made 19 unforced errors, only one less than the Frenchwoman, who is ranked 253.
"It has been very tricky with the wind," said 29-year-old Davenport, who is hoping to repeat her 1998 triumph at Flushing Meadows. Today I felt like I stepped it up a little bit better and was more consistent".
MEN'S SINGLES
FIRST ROUND
(17) David Ferrer (Spa) bt Agustin Calleri (Arg) 4-6 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 6-1.
SECOND ROUND
(2) Rafael Nadal (Spa) bt Scoville Jenkins (USA) 6-4 7-5 6-4, Xavier Malisse (Bel) bt Brian Baker (USA) 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 6-3 6-4, (19) Tommy Robredo (Spa) bt Gustavo Kuerten (Bra) 5-7 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 6-2, (24) Mikhail Youzhny (Rus) bt Jonas Bjorkman (Swe) 6-4 6-4 6-3, Sebastien Grosjean (Fra) bt (14) Thomas Johansson (Swe) 6-3 6-2 4-6 6-2.
WOMEN'S SINGLES
SECOND ROUND
Julia Schruff (Ger) bt Lisa Raymond (USA) 6-2 6-3, (9) Nadia Petrova (Rus) bt Aiko Nakamura (Jpn) 6-2 6-0, Laura Granville (USA) bt Nicole Pratt (Aus) 6-4 5-7 7-5, (30) Ai Sugiyama (Jpn) bt Michaela Pastikova (Cze) 2-6 6-4 6-4, Shahar Peer (Isr) bt (33) Vera Douchevina (Rus) 7-5 3-6 6-3, (10) Venus Williams (USA) bt Maria Kirilenko (Rus) 6-1 6-3, (20) Daniela Hantuchova (Svk) bt Maria Emilia Salerni (Arg) 6-1 6-0, (25) Francesca Schiavone (Ita) bt Emma Laine (Fin) 6-2 6-2, (8) Serena Williams (USA) bt Catalina Castano (Col) 6-2 6-2, (17) Jelena Jankovic (Ser) bt Alexa Glatch (USA) 6-2 6-0, Yoon-Jeong Cho (Kor) bt (27) Gisela Dulko (Arg) 6-4 6-3, (15) Nathalie Dechy (Fra) bt Vania King (USA) 6-1 6-1, (7) Justine Henin-Hardenne (Bel) bt Maria Antonia Sanchez-Lorenzo (Spa) 6-3 6-4, (29) Anna Chakvetadze (Rus) bt Jill Craybas (USA) 6-0 6-2, (19) Elena Likhovtseva (Rus) bt Magdalena Maleeva (Bul) 6-2 6-1, (2) Lindsay Davenport (USA) bt Pauline Parmentier (Fra) 6-1 6-1, (32) Anabel Medina Garrigues (Spa) bt Tian Tian Sun (Chn) 6-4 7-5, (13) Anastasia Myskina (Rus) bt Amy Frazier (USA) 6-3 6-2, (12) Mary Pierce (Fra) bt Katarina Srebotnik (Slo) 6-3 6-2, (23) Tatiana Golovin (Fra) bt Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi (Isr) 6-4 7-6 (8-6).
