Coming off a stunning victory at the London Olympics, beating the great Roger Federer in the final, Andy Murray has a lot to prove coming into the final Grand Slam of the year at the U.S. Open.
The Brit got off to a reasonable start, scoring a relatively comfortable 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 win over Alex Bogomolov Jr, although the number three seed was troubled a bit by his opponent in the first two sets, winning the final five games and the last four games, after going behind early.
"I just didn't serve that well," Murray told reporters after the match. "Didn't serve well most of the match.
"That was why I actually felt okay. I mean, I lost serve, then I broke straight back I think both times. It was more the serving. I just didn't serve that well."
Despite the small hiccups, Murray pulled away in the third set to wrap up the match quickly and was reasonably satisfied with his performance. "I won in three sets, even though I didn't serve very well," the world number four said. "Only lost seven games in three sets, so I must have done something well today.
"Bogomolov, I think, he was seeded here last year. He made the third round. He plays his best tennis on the hard courts. He's a tough player.
"So, I played fairly well from the back of the court. I just would have liked to have served a bit better because I wasn't getting many free points on my serve. Because of that, there were a lot more rallies. When he's in rhythm, he's tough to break down."
Murray admitted he was caught unawares by the conditions at Flushing Meadows, and found it difficult to adjust to the breeze. "It's been hot when I've been practicing the last few days," he said. "The breeze is a lot stronger than it has been.
"From one of the ends you had to do a lot of defending, a fair amount of running. That was probably the hardest thing rather than the heat."
Murray, who is looking for his first Grand Slam victory, said winning the Olympics had made him a better player and put him in a more relaxed frame of mind. "Well, I mean, I know personally that winning a gold medal at a home Olympics is very rare," he added. "There's very few people that get the chance to do that.
"Yeah, I mean, it was a huge match for me. The support I've had since the match and since the Wimbledon final has been excellent, and it helps when you're playing matches.
"I've had a good time. The last few weeks have been fun. I've enjoyed it. Mentally I feel like I'm in a good place; physically I think all the players are going to be tired after a long season.
"But this is the last major competition of the year, and you've just got to push through it and that's it."
