Murray Expects Stern Test From Dangerous Cilic

a game of football tennis with his team. Once the grand slams are underway all the hard work has been done and Andy Murray's main aim, after defeating Janko Tipsarevic and reaching the last 16 of the French Open for the first time, is to get as much rest and relaxation as possible before today's fourth round match against the dangerous 20-year-old Croatian, Marin Cilic.

"During the slams you don't really do anything. You should really have done all of your fitness work and most of your practicing before you get there. Janko [who retired with leg injuries when 7-6 6-3 down] was obviously a bit tired because he had played eight hours in his two previous matches. You need to make sure you don't over-do it because it's a long couple weeks," Murray says.

This is unknown territory at Roland Garros for Cilic too, who previously had won only one match here. The 6ft 6in youngster (it appears de rigueur to be tall in Croatia) has had a mixed year, winning titles in Chennai and Zagreb and reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open, but since then having only limited success. Until, that is, he stepped through the gates here, where he has breezed past his first three opponents in straight sets, dropping only 21 games.

Murray, acknowledged as one of the game's leading tacticians, knows exactly what to expect: "He serves well and, for a big guy, he moves good. Him and Juan Martín Del Potro – for two huge guys – play different games to how you would expect maybe 10 or 15 years ago. They don't come to the net that much, playing mainly from the back and hitting big ground strokes. Marin is solid and he serves well."

Murray lost to the Argentinian Del Potro in the quarter-finals of the Madrid Masters recently, principally because he became came a little too tentative, something he will need to guard against when playing the similar Cilic. "Andy is still moving great but you can get him off balance on clay because he's not used to sliding enough," says Tipsarevic.

Cilic was French junior champion here in 2005, defeating Murray in the semi-finals, his last match before turning professional. "I can't remember it, to be honest. I don't look back on them because they don't make a difference to your career once you start to get on to the tour," says Murray. "Obviously I would have liked to have won that tournament. I'd won the US Open the year before and I was probably disappointed that I lost. But I'd rather look back at the matches that I've played since I've grown up."

Cilic and Murray have played twice since, Murray winning over five sets on Wimbledon's No1 Court in a Davis Cup world group play-off in 2007 and then 7-5 7-6 in last year's Madrid Masters, where Murray won the title and when it was indoors. Neither of these matches has much relevance on this occasion. Murray's development has clearly been the more rapid, though Cilic is currently at a career high No13 and seems destined to challenge for the top titles in the near future, assuming his progress remains unimpeded by injury.

He has benefited from having fellow Croatians Ivan Ljubicic, Mario Ancic, and Ivo Karlovic on the tour, which has enabled him to develop without undue pressure, and he has now established himself as his country's top player. As yet he has never gone beyond the last 16 of a slam, though the breakthrough must be imminent, given his undoubted talent. "If I don't play well then I'll probably lose," says Murray, who would so dearly love to get another crack at Rafa Nadal in the semi-finals, having beaten the world No1 in last year's US Open at that stage.

"In my opinion Andy is the best defender and has the best passing shot on the tour," says Tipsarevic. "He's a world-class player and always makes you play that extra shot. I mean he's not Nadal, but he is still a great player on clay. But Cilic is going to be a big, big test."