REVENGE WON'T MOTIVATE MURRAY

Andy Murray insists he will not be gunning for revenge when he meets Fernando Verdasco in the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

The British number one cruised into the last eight with a 6-1 6-0 demolition of Victor Troicki yesterday, while Verdasco was similarly impressive in defeating Radek Stepanek 6-2 6-2.

Murray won all of his first five meetings against the Spaniard but the sixth came in the fourth round of the Australian Open in January and this time Verdasco edged a five-setter.

The British number one was the form player at the start of the season and had been tipped to win his first grand slam in Melbourne.

But, despite that disappointment, Murray is adamant the defeat will not be preying on his mind as he bids to reach the semi-finals.

The world number four told Sky Sports: "It's not like I'd be going for revenge or whatever, it's just another match. He's obviously played well this year."

The British number one did not need to be anywhere near his best against the beleaguered Troicki as he wrapped up victory in less than an hour.

Murray had started slowly in his second and third-round matches but he sprung out of the traps, breaking in Troicki's first service game.

Murray won their only previous meeting in straight sets on his way to the title in St Petersburg last year and the early stages offered no indication there might be a different result.

Indeed, Troicki was struggling just to win points and two crunching returns from Murray helped him to a second successive break and a 4-0 lead.

The Scot had two points to wrap up a love set but, to his credit, Troicki came up with some big serves to finally get on the board after 27 minutes.

It was only a temporary reprieve, however, as Murray easily served out the set.

Troicki's main problem was his serve, with the Serbian's first-serve percentage down at 25% in the opening set and his second serve an invitation to his opponent.

The second set continued in the same vein with Murray again taking full advantage of Troicki's woes to break in the first game.

The Serbian battled hard to try to hold on to his serve but again he was unsuccessful as Murray eased to a 3-0 lead.

Troicki fought back from 0-40 to 30-40 in his next service game but another short second serve was a present for Murray and he duly served out for an easy victory.

The 21-year-old revealed he had gained confidence from his fast start and declared himself content with his performance.

He said: "I played well. I concentrated hard and got my tactics spot on. It's nice to get off the court quickly.

"He didn't hit his first serve particularly well and I took confidence from my good start because I hadn't started that well in my last couple of matches."

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MURRAY READY FOR TOUGH TROICKI TEST

For Andy Murray, this week in Miami is all about denting the pride of a Serbian.

Viktor Troicki may not have been the one he had in mind, however, when he set about trying to overtake Novak Djokovic as the world's third-best player.

It is though the less heralded son of Belgrade who stands in the Scot's way later today as he looks to secure passage to the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open.

The 23-year-old took just six games off the British number one in their only previous meeting in Russia last year.

But after watching Troicki thrash former world number three David Nalbandian in the second round in Florida, Murray is expecting a far stiffer challenge this time around.

"He's a tough player. He's had a couple of good wins here so far, beating Nalbandian, so if I want to win that one I'll have to play well," he said.

"I played him once before in St Petersburg and won comfortably but he's playing better now than he was then.

"I'll have to just try to up my game a bit."

Just as in his second-round match against Juan Monaco, Murray put in a patchy display in Monday's 6-4 6-4 win over 2004 Olympic champion Nicolas Massu.

The Chilean seized the initiative early on before Murray ground his way back into a dominant position - only to then threaten to fritter the win at 5-1 in the second set.

And the Briton admits that as the Masters tournament enters its crucial last few days, he will have to find a level of consistency he has not displayed since returning from a virus in Indian Wells earlier this month.

"You just have to stay focused. Sometimes when you get a couple of breaks up the adrenaline goes a little bit and you go for shots you shouldn't be going for," he told Sky Sports.

"Then your opponent gets some confidence and you get a little bit nervous when he comes back into it.

"You need to stay focused and I did that really well at the start of the year and the end of last year.

"It's something that I've lost a little bit since I came back, but I'm sure that for the more important matches it will get better."

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Sportbetting.com offers betting options on all major tennis events, both male and female. Clients can wager on the Money line only, choosing who will win the match.

Name	Money line
A. Roddick	-160
A. Agassi	+140

Match-up bets:
Match-ups are money line bets. When betting a money line, you are betting that the player will win straight up in order to win your bet. Betting on A. Roddick -160 means you must risk $160 to win $100. Betting on A. Agassi +140, you stake $100 to win $140.

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In the event of the following circumstances taking place all bets will stand:

» A change of playing surface
» A change of venue
» A change from indoor court to outdoor court or vice versa.

Note: In tennis wagers, an event will still have action as long as the event is played within a week from the original schedule date or is played on the same tournament.

Davydenko faces betting inquiry

Nikolay Davydenko will have to answer questions in connection with the gambling scandal surrounding his recent defeat by Martin Vassallo Arguello.

The world number four withdrew from the match in Poland earlier this month when losing 2-6 6-3 2-1 because of injury.

Online betting exchange Betfair reported concerns of irregular gambling patterns to tennis's governing body.

Davydenko, who denies any involvement, will be questioned by ATP investigators after the China Open next month.

The Russian, who beat Jesse Levine in the first round of the US Open on Monday, admitted the issue had become an unwelcome distraction.

"I've never gambled in my life and I don't know any guys who do," he said.

"It's difficult - it's like mentally you are tired, not physically. It would be good for me to take a rest and nobody hear nothing about me.

"It's pretty tough for me in this position now. Everybody sees I am like bad guy who is gambling. I've never done anything in my life like this.

"I need to concentrate now on tennis because I have every week a tournament.

"I try to say every week I don't do anything like this. I never did. How many weeks will I have to answer questions? How many months? Maybe all this year."

The 26-year-old had been struggling with a foot injury, losing his first match at three events in a row before managing a first-round victory in the tournament in Poland.

About £3.4m had been bet on his second-round match against Arguello - 10 times the amount typical for a match of this kind, distorting the market, and Betfair refused to pay out on the match.

Speaking on 3 August, Davydenko's agent Eckhard Oehms said his client was innocent of any involvement in the alleged betting scam.

"Betting is not part of his striving for titles. Nikolay won quite a few titles last year," Oehms told BBC Radio 5live.

"He's fighting hard to come to the same form this year. He still has a bit to make up in terms of Masters and Grand Slams but the betting, I can rule that out totally."

Betfair spokesman Mark Davies told BBC Radio 5live: "It's not so much the amount that was bet, it's the prices at which they were bet.

"Davydenko won the first set but during the course of winning it, his price drifted out not in. That doesn't strike us as a normal betting pattern.

"We have an understanding with the ATP that we can share information with them so that they can know exactly what bets were taking place and from who, so we'll be liaising with them.

"We have suspended payouts and we will consider what we can do in order to ensure fairness and transparency."

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The Monday Slice: Too much second-guessing of Federer

FIRST SERVE

If Roger Federer's iron grip on men's tennis is a thing of the past, never to return, then the reason won't be his unborn child, or his refusal to appoint a full-time coach.

Since his fifth-set collapse in the Australian Open final against Rafael Nadal, Federer's game and mindset have dominated discussion in tennis circles and opinion is divided on whether he can ever again match the remarkable standards he set for himself over five glorious years.

However, the analysis and second-guessing of the world's second-best player is now going a step too far.

On countless occasions over the past week, Federer has had to answer questions on whether impending fatherhood – his long-term girlfriend Mirka Vavrinec recently announced she was pregnant – would hinder his efforts to overhaul Nadal as No.1.

Then there is his ongoing decision to do things his own way, instead of employing a permanent coach. Australian Darren Cahill, who previously worked with Andre Agassi and Lleyton Hewitt, spent a few days with Federer in Dubai two weeks ago before the pair decided against teaming up.

For some, the choice to shun the chance to combine with a coach of Cahill's reputation was a sign of weakness and proof of Federer's inability to accept he doesn't always know best.

Yet there was no questioning of the choice to go solo when the Swiss master was racking up Grand Slam titles with consummate ease.

The events of Australia proved that, mentally at least, Federer is not in a particularly good place just now. But to rip up the plan which took him to 13 Slam titles would be a foolish knee-jerk reaction.

Federer does appear to have a mental block about Nadal and it is that issue that he needs to fix – and fix himself. It is some psychological perspective, not a drastic overhaul, that will give him the best chance of taking the challenge to his great rival.

DROP SHOT

The women's draw at the BNP Paribas Open resembled a bloodbath in the opening week, with Jelena Jankovic, Elena Dementieva and Svetlana Kuznetsova sent crashing out in their opening matches. Nine of the top 16 seeds failed to make it to Monday, and with Venus and Serena Williams boycotting the event, big ranking points and prize money are up for grabs for some lower-ranked players.

USE YOUR FREQUENT FLYER MILES

The tennis universe is centered on the Californian desert again this week, with fans eagerly anticipating a renewal of hostilities between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, the kings of the men's game.

CLEAN WINNER

Congratulations to Richard Williams, the outspoken and controversial father of tennis' most famous sister act. Reports from Florida this week have indicated that the 67-year-old is to be married to Lakeisha Graham, 37 years his junior, after the Key Biscayne tournament later this month.

THIS WEEK'S PREDICTIONS

Last week's the Monday Slice predicted Nadal and Elena Dementieva would prevail at Indian Wells. No reason to change our backing of Nadal, who has looked in imperious form so far. Dementieva was upset by Petra Cetkovska, leaving the bottom half of the draw wide open. Look for Ana Ivanovic to emerge and make a run at the title.

BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells: Rafael Nadal
BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells: Ana Ivanovic

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