Murray makes light work of Garcia-Lopez

ANDY Murray knows exactly when to turn the screw and his 6-4, 6-4 victory over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez highlighted his ability to move through the gears.

SLOW AND STEADY: Andy Murray steadily edges up a gear at the AEGON Championships at Queen's

Murray made a winning start to his singles grass-court season with a comfortable win over Italy's Andreas Seppi at Queen's yesterday and he raised his game just enough to power past Garcia-Lopez.

The Spaniard, ranked 52nd in the world, stood toe-to-toe with Murray for the first eight games but as the first set drew to a close, Murray turned up the heat and raced away.

The second set followed a similar pattern, the only difference being Murray securing the pivotal break in the fifth game, before strolling into the quarter finals.

"It was a tough match to come through but I'm pleased with the way I did," said Murray. "He played a good match and he was a difficult opponent.

"It took me a while to get going but once I got the break I grew in confidence a starting striking the ball a lot better.

"And in the second set I felt a lot more comfortable. I sat back a bit today and didn't come to the net that much - it all depends on the opponent really."

Murray will now face the USA's Mardy Fish for a place in the last four and as top seed and world number three, the Scot is already heavy favourite to become the first Brit to lift the crown at Queen's.

And the British number one insists he is thriving on the growing weight of expectation he will be the first Brit in 32 years to lift the Wimbledon crown.

"At a tournament like this you want to leave it thinking you have hit the ball well," added Murray. "Obviously there is a lot of expectation on me to win but I enjoy the support.

"I also like coming back to Britain and playing because the whole crowd is behind me and you don't really get that anywhere else."   

Meanwhile, former world number one Andy Roddick booked his place in the last eight with a hard fought 7-6, 7-6 victory over 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt.

Roddick and Hewitt have eight Queen's titles between them, and having set up a quarter-final clash with fellow big server Ivo Karlovic, the 2003 US Open is not expecting a crowd-pleasing match tomorrow.

There'll be a lot of points tomorrow which will be like watching paint dry for the crowd," said Roddick.

"It's about winning points at the right time rather than form against Ivo."

Leading life assurance and pensions company AEGON is lead partner of British Tennis and is backing the sport at all levels, from grass roots to world class tennis events. For tickets and further information visit www.lta.org.uk