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Australian Open, Melbourne
Venue: Melbourne Park Dates: 17-30 January
Coverage: Watch on BBC TV, Red Button, BBC Sport website (UK only) & Eurosport; listen on BBC 5 live sports extra and online; text commentary online; full details
Britain's Andy Murray continued his serene progress at the Australian Open with a straight sets demolition of Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in round three.
World number five Murray tore the 32nd seed to shreds with eight breaks of serve in his 6-1 6-1 6-2 triumph.
Murray was broken once in the first set but was otherwise completely untroubled as he came through in 92 minutes.
The 23-year-old Scot, still yet to drop a set at this year's event, next plays Marcos Baghdatis or Jurgen Melzer.
"It was a very good match," Murray told BBC Sport straight after his win. "I came back from 40-0 down to break serve in the first game, so I got off to perfect start and settled down after that.
"I've played him once before and he's a tough player but I played well. I didn't give him many chances on my serve so I'm happy.
"My intensity has been good so when I play the tougher matches I think I'll be ok. If I can keep up my intensity I'll have a good chance.
Murray, who saw off Karol Beck and Illya Marchenko in rounds one and two, added: "I have played very well in every match.
"It is difficult to concentrate for long periods in this heat. I've won my matches in straight sets but it's definitely a lot harder than the scoreline suggest."
Murray beat Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-4 on their only previous meeting, at Queen's in June 2010, and knows him well from time they have spent practicing together.
Such familiarity looked as if it might play into the Spaniard's hands as he stunned the crowd with a through-the-legs winner en route to a 40-0 lead in game one.
But Murray clearly had other ideas and fought back aggressively to deuce before breaking serve when Garcia-Lopez clipped a forehand into the tramlines.
He swiftly sealed the double-break, set up by a backhand return winner up the line and sealed after his opponent dumped a meek forehand into the net.
Garcia-Lopez, who beat Rafael Nadal on the way to winning the Thailand Open in October, hit back to reduce the deficit - only for his service woes to return in game five.
Murray was targeting the 27-year-old's second delivery with huge success and he brilliantly chased down a drop shot to earn another break point, which was converted for a 4-1 lead.
The Scot broke for the fourth time to seal a 24-minute opening set and picked up where he left off at the start of the second.
Murray worked hard in the off-season on his delivery and he was beginning to reap the rewards, keeping his first serve percentage above 60% throughout and denying Garcia-Lopez a look-in.
The right-hander from Albacete simply could not cope with Murray's power, precision, variety or movement and, as in the first set, the British number one cantered into a 3-0 lead.
After firing long with an overhead from the baseline to concede the double-break in game four, Garcia-Lopez showed his frustration by smashing the ball high into the air.
More to follow.
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Venue: Melbourne Park Dates: 17-30 January
Coverage: Watch on BBC TV, Red Button, BBC Sport website (UK only) & Eurosport; listen on BBC 5 live sports extra and online; text commentary online; full details
Britain's Andy Murray continued his serene progress at the Australian Open with a straight sets demolition of Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in round three.
World number five Murray tore the 32nd seed to shreds with eight breaks of serve in his 6-1 6-1 6-2 triumph.
Murray was broken once in the first set but was otherwise completely untroubled as he came through in 92 minutes.
The 23-year-old Scot, still yet to drop a set at this year's event, next plays Marcos Baghdatis or Jurgen Melzer.
"It was a very good match," Murray told BBC Sport straight after his win. "I came back from 40-0 down to break serve in the first game, so I got off to perfect start and settled down after that.
"I've played him once before and he's a tough player but I played well. I didn't give him many chances on my serve so I'm happy.
"My intensity has been good so when I play the tougher matches I think I'll be ok. If I can keep up my intensity I'll have a good chance.
Murray, who saw off Karol Beck and Illya Marchenko in rounds one and two, added: "I have played very well in every match.
"It is difficult to concentrate for long periods in this heat. I've won my matches in straight sets but it's definitely a lot harder than the scoreline suggest."
Murray beat Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-4 on their only previous meeting, at Queen's in June 2010, and knows him well from time they have spent practicing together.
Such familiarity looked as if it might play into the Spaniard's hands as he stunned the crowd with a through-the-legs winner en route to a 40-0 lead in game one.
But Murray clearly had other ideas and fought back aggressively to deuce before breaking serve when Garcia-Lopez clipped a forehand into the tramlines.
He swiftly sealed the double-break, set up by a backhand return winner up the line and sealed after his opponent dumped a meek forehand into the net.
Garcia-Lopez, who beat Rafael Nadal on the way to winning the Thailand Open in October, hit back to reduce the deficit - only for his service woes to return in game five.
Murray was targeting the 27-year-old's second delivery with huge success and he brilliantly chased down a drop shot to earn another break point, which was converted for a 4-1 lead.
The Scot broke for the fourth time to seal a 24-minute opening set and picked up where he left off at the start of the second.
Murray worked hard in the off-season on his delivery and he was beginning to reap the rewards, keeping his first serve percentage above 60% throughout and denying Garcia-Lopez a look-in.
The right-hander from Albacete simply could not cope with Murray's power, precision, variety or movement and, as in the first set, the British number one cantered into a 3-0 lead.
After firing long with an overhead from the baseline to concede the double-break in game four, Garcia-Lopez showed his frustration by smashing the ball high into the air.
More to follow.
Print Sponsor
Business Forum | Christian Forum | Coupon Forum | Discussion Forum | Gamers Forum
Legal Forum | Politics Forum | Sports Forum | Teen Forum | Webmaster Forum