Andy Murray v Rafael Nadal – Wimbledon 2011 men’s semi-final live! | Scott Murray

• Email your thoughts to scott.murray@guardian.co.uk • Press F5 to refresh this page or use our auto-refresher First set: Murray* 5-4 Nadal. Now it’s Murray’s turn to hold to love. He’s serving big, and standing up to Nadal during the rallies. First set: Murray 4-4 Nadal*. Nothing for Nadal to worry about here, as he wins his service game to love. “Sorry, but wasn’t Harold Mahony, although born in Edinburgh, really an Irishman from Kerry?” asks Dermot Meagher. Hmm. And for goodness sake, please don’t google Vere St Leger Goold, you’ll reveal this report to be a tissue of lies. First set: Murray* 4-3 Nadal. A majestic rally for the first point, Nadal nearly passing Murray at the net but the Scot anticipating well to volley a point-blank winner. Then another mini-classic for the second, Nadal whipping a cross-court backhand through both advantage courts. Murray sees the game out with some more powerful serving. This match isn’t exactly exciting as of yet, but the tennis is of very high quality. “That roll call of men’s finalists contains some of the finest names I have ever read,” opines Daniel Boynton. “It’s a close call, but Vere St Leger Goold must be the best. ‘Andrew Murray’ doesn’t really stack up by comparison does it?” I hope I copied that out correctly. First set: Murray 3-3 Nadal*. Nadal goes 30-0 up. Murray sends a screamer down the right-hand sideline, then Nadal dumps a woeful backhand out of play down his deuce court. Nadal bounces back by forcing a Murray error at the end of a 19-shot baseline rally, and before you know it the game is won. This is a proper face off at the moment. “McIntyre and Corden are together?” shudders Louise Wright. “You realise that means that the other two horsemen of the apocalypse are almost certainly on their way? I’d return top your loved ones and wait for the Rapture if I were you. Or just go down the pub.” Russell Howard and Joe Pasquale are coming too? Lord help us, there’s no need for this. First set: Murray* 3-2 Nadal. An easy service game to love for Murray. Everything’s going well. Apart from that dodgy hip, the poor old soul. But there’s some good news there too: the pusher comes on, offering powerful drugs, but Murray waves him away. It’s the only way to deal with these people. Listen to what Bo Diddley tells you , kids. First set: Murray 2-2 Nadal*. Both players take turns to dump easy strokes into the net, Nadal a forehand, Murray a sliced backhand. Murray looks particularly annoyed, as he had an easy chance to put Nadal away while approaching the net and move 0-30 up. Nadal mops the remaining points up without fuss. First set: Murray* 2-1 Nadal. At 30-15, Nadal moves Murray around hither and yon, before passing his opponent with a blistering cross-court shot from his own deuce court to Murray’s. It’s in, but the ball’s called out, and Nadal doesn’t challenge. Nadal wins the next point, so he’s effectively been robbed of the first break point of the match. Murray serves out to hold. All good news, except he’s called for the trainer. That hip is playing up again. He’s been given the option to get a jab if it doesn’t simmer down during the next couple of games, but he’ll have to go off court for that. First set: Murray 1-1 Nadal*. A fairly painless game for Nadal. Murray gets his racquet on all but one of the serves, forcing three rallies, but Nadal wins all the points, then finishes off with a booming ace of his own. A fairly painless game, I say, other than some clown shouting “We love you Andy”, then a gaggle of other goons laughing at the bon mot. Maybe it was McIntyre testing out some new material. If so, he’s getting edgier. First set: Murray* 1-0 Nadal. Nope. Rafa wins his first point, but Murray responds by whistling down another huge ace. His first-serve averages haven’t been the best this tournament; he’ll be hoping for more of this, because that’s a very impressive opening. 4.45pm: And we’re off! Murray belts down an ace to start, then serves and volleys a second point to go 30-0 up. And then another ace! Can he win his first service game to love writes hack who needs to break this game into two entries in order to segue into the proper format ? 4.40pm: Is the BBC trying to throw everyone into a thundering depression before Murray even has a chance to crash out in three sets? The first celebrity cutaway of the match is of landfill comedians Michael McIntyre and James Corden, chatting away to each other. Maybe they’re swapping notes on how they’ve got away with it. 4.35pm: Murray has won the toss. He elects to serve in the first game. The players are knocking up. Nadal is wearing a determined look today – when doesn’t he? – but much good that gameface will do him: win or lose Wimbledon, he’ll not be world number one any more come Monday morning. 4.30pm: The idle chatter on Centre Court turns into a smattering of polite applause as the players walk out. It’s almost as though half the crowd have gone off to purchase Pimm’s, and the ones remaining are paggered on Pimm’s. Either way, it’s a low-key start to the big event. Murray almost immediately leaves the court – he’s got his bag of rackets, and is wearing both of his shoes, so perhaps he’s forgot his wristband – then makes his entrance again. Still no big cheer. 4.20pm: Murray and Nadal should be out on centre court in a few minutes, as Novak Djokovic has just beaten Jo Wilfred Tsonga 7-6, 6-2, 6-7, 6-3 , making it to his first Wimbledon final. He’s not having too bad a year, is he? He’ll be the new world number one after this tournament, whatever happens on Sunday. The crowd: Unfunny. The weather: Sunny. Still, here’s hoping, and the head-to-head in slams isn’t the disaster zone it could be:. Nadal leads 4-2, having beaten Murray in the last 16 at the 2007 Australian Open, in the quarters at Wimbledon in 2008, in the semis here last year, and in the semis of the French Open in May. Murray has triumphed over Nadal in the semi-final of the 2008 US Open, and the quarters of the 2010 Australian Open. Murray’s due one. Like that means anything. Let’s face it, the odds aren’t in his favour (and I’m talking him down with a view to managing expectations and tempting fate). Murray is spectacularly good – and the most entertaining tennis player on the circuit at the moment by a long chalk – but Rafael Nadal is just that little bit better. Duller, but better. Relentless and better. Spencer Gore. William Marshall. Frank Hadow. John Hartley. Vere St Leger Goold. Herbert Lawford. William Renshaw. Ernest Renshaw. Willoughby Hamilton. Wilfred Baddeley. Joshua Pim. Wilberforce Eaves. Harold Mahony. Reginald Doherty. Lawrence Doherty. Arthur Gore. Sydney Smith. Frank Riseley. Herbert Barrett. Josiah Ritchie. Randolph Lycett. Bunny Austin. Fred Perry. So can Andy Murray join this roll call of British gentlemen’s Wimbledon finalists, a roll call I’m sure we can all rattle off, the tennis loving nation that we are? Wimbledon 2011 Wimbledon Andy Murray Rafael Nadal Tennis Scott Murray guardian.co.uk

Posted by on July 1, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.