McEnroe places Murray on US short-list
September 01, 2010 11:24:55 UK
John McEnroe has picked out three players who he believes can win the US Open, Andy Murray is one of them but he believes Roger Federer still holds the upper hand.
Murray gets his bid for a first Grand Slam title underway this afternoon against Slovakia's Lukas Lacko, with Federer having already cruised into the second round on Monday evening.
Match betting for the first round clash has Murray fancied at 1.015 to proceed while Lacko can be backed at 13.00.
World number one Rafael Nadal is the other player McEnroe thinks can lift the title on 12th September, but he and Murray will have to do it the hard way after being placed in the same half of the draw, the other half to Federer.
"Federer is not going to have to deal with both of them, which is good for him," McEnroe said. "How much will Rafa and Andy beat up on each other in the semis?
"I would be very surprised if one of those guys did not win it. Andy can absolutely win it - if it doesn't happen this year, maybe next year."
Murray recently defeated Nadal and Federer in consecutive matches to defend his Masters series title in Toronto.
And McEnroe added on BBC Radio Five Live: "The difference with Andy is his willingness to go after the ball, to be more aggressive.
"This is something he may have been thinking about for a while.
"I think it was time maybe. Maclagan did a good job, like (Mark) Petchey before him and now it's time for the next step. It seems like a good thing to try."
Outright betting for the US Open currently has Murray at 10001.00, with Federer 2.10 and Nadal 2.00.
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