By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Andy Murray rallied past Richard Gasquet to reach his fourth Roland Garros semifinal and a meeting with defending champion Stan Wawrinka.
Photo credit: Philippe Montigny/FFT
Confronting unruly bounces on a soggy court amid smoldering Grand Slam pressure was the least of Andy Murray's worries today.
The world No. 2 was too busy facing the twisting topspin of Richard Gasquet and the rising chorus of French fans after the ninth-seeded Frenchman fought back to snatch the first set.
More: Serene Djokovic Books Quarterfinal Spot
Murray muted French fans and their final singles hope silencing Gasquet 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-0, 6-2 to surge into his fourth Roland Garros semifinal in his last five appearances.
Trailing 1-3 in the tie break, the Rome champion completely turned the match around wrapping a pair of aces around a forehand winner. A forehand volley brought Murray to set point and he closed the second set with a forehand winner to level.
"I think I played some really good stuff today," Murray told the media afterward. "I do think I played well. Obviously the match could have been maybe more comfortable had I done a bit better serving out the first two sets.
"But aside from that, you know, I was playing some good stuff. I finished the match extremely well, I think... I thought I did well for the most part in, you know, a tough atmosphere, too. It's not bad."
Standing between Murray and his goal of completing a career Grand Slam of final appearances is reigning champion Stan Wawrinka.
The third-seeded Swiss scored his 12th straight Roland Garros victory overwhelming Albert Ramos-Vinolas, 6-2, 6-1, 7-6 (7).
Wawrinka insists he's not part of tennis' Big Four. His two career Grand Slam championships matches Murray's output; Wawrinka puts himself behind the second-seeded Scot in the elite pecking order.
"I think (Murray) is well ahead of me," Wawrinka said. "Now that I've won a second Grand Slam people say I'm closer to him because I have won two and he's won two as well.
"But if you were to compare our two careers he's well ahead of me given all the titles, the finals, No. 2 in the world, and he has so many Masters 1000, as well. Therefore, as I kept on repeating, he's in the Big 4. You know, there is a reason for this. Maybe he has fewer titles, fewer titles than the other big 3, but he's always been with them during the semis, the finals. His career is very, very impressive."
Murray solved one of the best one-handers in the game in deconstructing Gasquet. Now he faces perhaps the most powerful one-hander in the sport in Wawrinka. The Swiss also possesses more weight and sting on his serve than Gasquet.
"They obviously have some similarities, but Stan probably hits a flatter ball," Murray said. "Richard plays with quite a lot of height and spin. Stan definitely plays a bit flatter off his forehand and can hit his backhand flat, as well has a bigger serve.
"But there are similarities there, for sure. At least I got used to playing against a single-hander today who can use the angles, change the direction up the line. So for that it was good preparation, but Stan definitely serves a little bit bigger. Not like Richard is easy to break, but Stan is a tough guy to break when he's serving well."
This will be the 16th meeting between the pair and their first clay-court clash since the 2013 Monte-Carlo Masters where Wawrinka mauled Murray, 6-1, 6-2.
"We didn't play that much the last few years. I play him in London last year. That's it," Wawrinka said. "On clay it's been long time, I think. He improved a lot. He's playing so well, especially again if you look this year. He won Rome; final in Madrid; semifinal in Monaco.
"So it's going to be interesting match, for sure. We normally play some good battle in the past, so I'm quite happy to play him. I think it's going to be a great challenge and a great semifinal."
Murray holds an 8-7 lead in their head-to-head series, but Wawrinka has reeled off seven straight sets and three consecutive victories over the 29-year-old Scot.
Defending Roland Garros isn't an added pressure burden insists Wawrinka. Instead, he draws confidence from raising the Coupe des Mousquetaires believing winning it once empowers him to do it again.
"The fact of winning here is something that puts away a lot of pressure, because I can say, Okay, I've won it once. I have done it before," Wawrinka said. "I didn't even expect it in the past. So it's done.
"But for a Grand Slam the deeper I go, the less pressure. If there is a final, of course, that's the peak of pressure. Apart from that, the other rounds before, no, the less pressure there is I'm more in the tournament, I feel things better, and I have more confidence. I accumulate confidence during the first rounds and then I can defeat the other players. It's as simple as that. If I'm lucky enough to reach the finals, again, a lot of pressure because you don't want to lose a final, but before that there are other matches to win."