Andy Murray won’t be taking his brother out to dinner to grill him about quarter-final opponent Vasek Pospisil, but he may want to buy him a drink for keeping him up late last night.
Hours after Pospisil completed an audacious comeback to defeat Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 to reach his first ever Grand Slam quarter-final, the weary 25-year-old was also taken to five sets in the doubles by Jamie Murray and partner John Peers.
And Murray couldn’t hide his delight at the thought of coming up against the Canadian following an exhausting ten-set day.
“I won’t be taking Jamie out to dinner and I won’t be asking for tips,” said the number three seed, following his fourth round win over Ivo Karlovic.
“Doubles and singles are two very different things and I already have an understanding of his game. I’ll watch some videos of him playing singles over the next couple days.
“He’s also played a lot of tennis here, which is a positive for him in some ways. Maybe he’s a little bit fatigued, so if that is the case, and I won’t bank on it, then I’ll try to use that to my advantage.”
Murray has seen off the unseeded Canadian three times in the last ten months – in Vienna, Rotterdam and Indian Wells – and has yet to drop a set.
Their last meeting, at the BNP Paribas Open, was particularly one-sided, Murray dropping just four games.
But the Canadian number two’s mental strength is turning into his trademark at the All England Club and despite his gruelling workload, he warned Murray that he won’t be running on empty.
“It’s going to be obviously a tough one,” said Pospisil, whose career earnings are £2 million compared to Murray’s £30m.
“He’s had a great results here over the years and he’s one of the big four.
“I think I’m serving well, I’m playing well and I will have a good day of rest now. I know I will have my hands full and I have to go out there and play to the best of my abilities and that’s what I plan on doing.
“One day of recovery is enough. I’ll sleep well and I will come out strong. I feel like I am stepping up my game at the moment.
“I know I will have my hands full, but the crowd won’t faze me. It doesn’t really bother me too much playing in front of crowds that are against me. I like playing in front of big crowds and it doesn’t matter if they are against me or cheering for me. I can’t wait for it.”
