Andy Murray conquers the wind and Lorenzo Sonego in Toronto

James Richardson 09 Aug 2023 8:12 AM

Andy Murray of Great Britain plays a backhand against Lorenzo Sonego of Italy

Andy Murray said that knowing what the conditions were going to be like in Toronto didn’t make playing in blustery conditions any easier.

The gusts of wind made life difficult for both players but it was Murray who coped better in a 7-6(3), 6-0 triumph over Lorenzo Sonego.

After a tight first set it seemed that Sonego switched off in the second set out of disappointment.

“It really wasn’t pleasant to play in,” said Murray of the conditions after his victory in the Toronto Masters.

“It was really blustery, changing direction during the point, and we knew coming in it was going to feel uncomfortable. We hit on this court this morning and it was really breezy.

“So I was expecting it but it still adds a bit of stress to the match and it was a really tight first set. There were lots of opportinties each way, I managed to sneak through the tie-break and after that he was obviously a bit disappointed, and I relaxed a little bit.”

Given the conditions in Toronto, Murray was just happy to get a win as he feels that the venue doesn’t suit his game despite his past success at the venue.

“The conditions here are very different to playing in Montreal,” Murray said.

“It’s always much faster here, it just takes time to get used to it,” said Murray. “Hopefully if I build some confidence and get through some matches, I believe I can play well on this court and in these conditions.

“Obviously, I’ve had success here in the past. It was a very long time ago, but I have good memories from this tournament. I love playing here and hopefully I can build a bit of momentum.”

Meanwhile fellow Brit Dan Evans couldn’t follow up his Citi Open title with success in Toronto.

Evans was downed by Gabriel Diallo to give the Canadian his first ATP Tour level win and he second head-to-head triumph over Evans after he beat the Brit at the Surbiton Challenger earlier this season.

“Words cannot really describe how I feel right now. I hope that everyone in this planet can feel what I’m feeling right now, this level of happiness,” Diallo said in his on-court interview after besting Evans.

“But obviously it doesn’t come without hard work behind the scenes. People don’t know us as tennis players, we travel, we lose first round, we go to crazy places losing first round, it’s so tough.

“But it shows that hard work eventually pays off and hopefully this can be the start of something.”

It wasn’t a great day for the top British players as Cameron Norrie also lost, albeit in a top 20 clash against Alex de Minaur.

The Australian also noted the difficult conditions after his win.

“It was definitely not easy conditions out here. It was blowing a gale, it didn’t make for pretty tennis,” said De Minaur.

“So I think we both struggled a bit out here today, but I’m happy I was able to get the win over an incredible opponent.”