Tennis: Djokovic, Murray outplay opponents

Top-seeds brush aside injury concerns, Ferrer also advances at Paris Masters.

PARIS: Top-seeds Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray both shrugged off injury concerns to sweep into the third round of the Paris Masters at Bercy Arena.

Djokovic’s participation in the year’s penultimate event, which he won in 2009, had been cast into doubt by the recurrence of a shoulder injury, but he was too good for Croatian Ivan Dodig in a 6-4, 6-3 victory.

The world number one succumbed to only his fourth defeat of the season against Kei Nishikori at last week’s Swiss Indoors and he showed signs of rustiness in the first set, double-faulting twice and producing 10 unforced errors.

A sublime behind-the-back forehand early in the second set proved he was finding his rhythm, however, and he closed out victory to set up an encounter with 15th-seeded compatriot Viktor Troicki.

Second-seed Murray had to withdraw from the Swiss Indoors with a buttock muscle strain but he showed no ill-effects in a 6-2, 6-4 defeat of France’s Jeremy Chardy.

The world number three will play American Andy Roddick next.

Spanish fourth-seed David Ferrer took his place in the third round with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Frenchman Nicolas Mahut.

Ferrer, who has already booked a berth at the WTA Tour Finals in London later this month, will face Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov for a place in the last-eight.

Serbian Janko Tipsarevic stormed into the third round by thrashing American Alex Bogomolov 6-1, 6-0 to set up a clash with fifth-seed Tomas Berdych.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 10^th,  2011.