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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Murray slumps to defeat in Japan | Murray slumps to defeat in Japan |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Andy Murray suffered his third straight defeat on the ATP Tour as he went down to Jiri Novak in the second round of the Japan Open. | Andy Murray suffered his third straight defeat on the ATP Tour as he went down to Jiri Novak in the second round of the Japan Open. |
| The 19-year-old Briton, who had a bye through the first round, went down 6-3 7-6 (7-1) to 31-year-old Novak. | The 19-year-old Briton, who had a bye through the first round, went down 6-3 7-6 (7-1) to 31-year-old Novak. |
| Murray fought back from 4-1 down in the second set but was no match for the Czech in the tie-break. | Murray fought back from 4-1 down in the second set but was no match for the Czech in the tie-break. |
| "Every single young player goes through a patch where he's not playing well," said fourth seed Murray. | "Every single young player goes through a patch where he's not playing well," said fourth seed Murray. |
| It's not like I lost to bad players Andy Murray | It's not like I lost to bad players Andy Murray |
| "You can't expect to get to the semi-finals every week - unless you're Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal. | "You can't expect to get to the semi-finals every week - unless you're Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal. |
| "They are the only two who can do it. I wasn't looking that far ahead." | "They are the only two who can do it. I wasn't looking that far ahead." |
| Murray lost to Tim Henman in his opening match in Bangkok last week. | Murray lost to Tim Henman in his opening match in Bangkok last week. |
| "It's not like I lost to bad players," said Murray. "Henman has been at the top of the game for a long time. Novak was number five in the world (in 2002). | "It's not like I lost to bad players," said Murray. "Henman has been at the top of the game for a long time. Novak was number five in the world (in 2002). |
| "I did well to fight back into the match but unfortunately I couldn't quite turn it around." | "I did well to fight back into the match but unfortunately I couldn't quite turn it around." |
| Roger Federer made a sluggish start in his first tour event since winning the US Open last month, beating Serbian qualifier Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-3). | Roger Federer made a sluggish start in his first tour event since winning the US Open last month, beating Serbian qualifier Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-3). |
| "It was a really tough match," said Federer. "I didn't know his game. I've never seen him play and it always takes time to figure a player out. | "It was a really tough match," said Federer. "I didn't know his game. I've never seen him play and it always takes time to figure a player out. |
| "I couldn't get a read on his serve, he mixed it up well. This was my first match of the tournament so I wanted to play it safe and get a rhythm." | "I couldn't get a read on his serve, he mixed it up well. This was my first match of the tournament so I wanted to play it safe and get a rhythm." |
| Second seed Tommy Robredo beat Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan 6-4 6-1 while Croatian number three seed Mario Ancic recorded a simple 6-1 6-4 victory over Kenneth Carlsen. | |
| Henman carries British hopes in Tokyo and will face Argentine Juan Martin del Potro on Thursday. | Henman carries British hopes in Tokyo and will face Argentine Juan Martin del Potro on Thursday. |