• BNP Paribas Masters

Murray plays down hamstring fears

Andy Murray has won 27 of his last 28 matches © Getty Images

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Andy Murray has played down concerns that his impressive late-season run is taking its toll ahead of the year-ending ATP World Tour Finals.

The world No. 3 cruised into the quarter-finals of the BNP Paribas Masters with a comprehensive 6-2 6-2 victory against Andy Roddick, marred only by the emergence of the trainer to look at the Scot's leg early in the first set.

But Murray, who is now unbeaten in 18 matches after winning three successive titles in the Far East before pulling out of the Swiss Indoors in Basel last week with a hamstring strain, insisted aches and pains were to be expected at the end of another long season.

"I felt my hamstring, similar to last week, and I just wanted to get it checked out," said Murray, who took to court at 9.30am to face Roddick in Paris.

"I'll have to monitor it. Everyone has niggles at this stage of the season and you have to deal with them. I felt it early on - it might have been to do with the early start. Maybe I didn't warm up as well as I normally would."

The early start did not seem to affect Murray's game as the British No. 1 broke the former US Open champion in the first game of each set before wrapping up victory in 61 minutes.

"The hardest thing about starting so early is that half an hour to 45 minutes before the match I was having to get pasta and fish down me," admitted Murray.

"But you just wake up a bit earlier - it's one of the things with tennis, you never know when you're going to play. I have had to get used to it the more years I've been on tour, but it was a bit early today."

Roddick vented his frustration early in the second set, smashing his racket to earn himself a code violation from umpire Mohamed Lahyani as Murray raced to a 4-0 lead.

"He's been No. 1 in the world, a grand slam champion, one of the best players in the last 10 years and always difficult to play against," said Murray, who extended his win-loss record to 8-3 against the American.

"I started the match really well and got up an early break. Andy can build pressure by serving well, but he didn't get a chance to go for one of my return games today. I got off to a good start and was always in the lead, and was able to dictate the match."

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