Wimbledon 2012: Rain Delay Doesn't Halt Murray's March

Andy Murray has continued his impressive march through the Wimbledon draw with a competent 7-5 6-2 6-3 victory over Croatian Marin Cilic. The game, which began at 15.45 on Monday finally came to a close on Tuesday at 14.00 thanks to a lengthy rain delay which saw play suspended numerous times. Though it wasn€™t quite a €˜game of two halves€™, there were prevalent worries that the disruption may hinder Murray€™s progress, but they were quickly dispelled as Murray picked up where he left off after the rain delay, barely allowing Cilic a second-glance as he demolished the 16th seed in a storming fashion. The first set started on even ground; both players went about breaking each other€™s serve before a highly entertaining set of tennis which saw some long-winded rallies and questionable line calls before Murray won the break of serve at 6-5, and served it out 7-5 to take the first set. Murray raced a break up in the second set, but play was ground to a halt as the heavens opened. With both players forced to leave the court, it was unlikely that any more play could be expected on Court One, which unlike Centre Court, has to make do without a roof. On returning to court the next day, the rain continued to pour, stuttering down around the stands and allowing only two games to be completed before being called off once again. When play finally resumed indefinitely, only one player seemed to have turned up. Murray€™s service game was key as he refused to give Cilic even a sniff of a break and the Croatian had no answer for Murray€™s impressive form. Just two weeks ago, Cilic had been crowned the champion at Queen€™s and many expected this game to be a real test for the British number one, but it was a surprising and welcome turn of events. With Cilic easily dispatched, Murray will now look to Wednesday€™s quarter final match-up against Spaniard David Ferrer. Murray will perhaps remember Ferrer from little under a month ago when the Spanish number two knocked Murray out of the French Open. On the green grass of home however, Murray will hold the advantage and the game should be a tense affair. Ferrer will not only be buoyed by his recent victory over the Scot, but also by the way he thrashed Juan Martin Del Potro in his fourth round game. The Spaniard is in some of the best form of his life and, always the professional, Ferrer commands a high level of respect from all his opponents, and is one Murray must not take lightly. How Can Murray Win: This is unlikely to be a three-set match; Murray will need to start off aggressive, similar to how Roddick played against Ferrer in the third round, but unlike Roddick, Murray needs to do what he did against Cilic and keep the intensity going. With Nadal out, Murray€™s chance of making the final has been elevated and this thought alone should really drive him on and inspire him to victory. Mentally, Murray is stronger than Ferrer and again, the crowd could really aid Murray in crossing the line first. Ferrer is a likable guy though and is similar to the likes of Federer in his style of play which can be a delight to watch, so Murray will have to play him at his own game, make points shorter than Ferrer would like, and serve impeccably. Murray€™s pace will come in handy as well considering Ferrer doesn€™t often make mistakes and so Murray€™s ability to hit winners from all over the court will have to be present in the game. How Ferrer Will Win: Like his opposite number, Ferrer is a master at getting the ball back over the net. Though he isn€™t a particularly powerful player, his accuracy is stunning and he is able to consistently plant the ball on the line, making it very difficult for his opponent and is where a large amount of his success has come from. He€™s very agile and athletic and it€™s likely there€™ll be a lot of baseline rallies between the two. His key to winning will be to do what he does best and do it well. If he plays like he did against Del Potro, then I think he€™ll beat Murray but the Scot is known for his ability to adapt, so with all things considered, it should be a belter of a game.