• ATP World Tour Finals

Nadal makes Murray favourite for London semi-final

ESPN staff
November 27, 2010
Rafael Nadal is unbeaten in London © Getty Images
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Rafael Nadal claims Andy Murray is favourite going into their semi-final at the ATP World Tour Finals on Saturday, insisting he can only win if the Briton fails to produce his best tennis.

In an odd evaluation of his chances at London's O2 Arena, the world No. 1 assured fans he would "try his best" against the home favourite. Nadal's comments appear to be based on the fact that the indoor surface is the least favourable for his game.

Nadal has never won the season-ending tournament, and he often struggles to find the trademark snap on his strokes when playing on the indoor carpet. However, in his three group-stage victories, the Spaniard has shown some majestic form to reach the last four unbeaten.

By contrast, Murray had to rely on Roger Federer beating Robin Soderling to ease his passage into the knockout stages, yet Nadal is convinced the Scot is favourite.

"If you talk to people who know about tennis, everybody would say the conditions are a little bit easier for Andy than for me here," Nadal explained. "The court is a little bit easier for him.

"I'm going to try my best. I know it's going to be a really difficult match. The only chance for me to win is to play my best tennis and hope that Andy doesn't play his highest level.

"The pressure comes back to him now."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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