Murray marches on in Melbourne as Brit batters Simon to reach last eight
By MIKE DICKSON
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The 25 year-old Scot has not dropped a set in four matches after this 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 victory that took an hour and 35 minutes, but there is the sense that he has not quite hit the form of last summer that took him to the Wimbledon final, Olympic gold and the US Open title.
In truth he has not really needed to, but will now have to start cranking his level up as the gradient is getting steeper.
Belter: Andy Murray powered his way past Gilles Simon and into the last eight of the Australian Open
Onwards and upwards: Murray celebrates after making light work of beating Simon
Not that his next opponent, another Frenchman in world No 36 Jeremy Chardy, is the most terrifying-looking foe to face in the quarter finals of a Grand Slam.
He got through earlier with a four set win over Italian No 1 Andreas Seppi but has earned his progression primarily through his third round dismissal of sixth seed Juan Martin Del Potro, so clearly has the capacity to upset some of the best players.
Certainly more than this version of the weary Simon, who was unable to cause problems partly due to the deep-seated fatigue in his limbs resulting from an epic match in the previous round.
'Obviously I didn't know how he would be, he is one of the best movers on the tour normally but he was struggling a bit today,' said Murray, who knows the next match will be inevitably harder.
'Chardy has got two good wins under his belt and I lost to him the last time I played him (last summer in Cincinatti, after the Olympics) so I know it is going to be tough.'
Sign him up: Murray had time for a few autographs on his way back to the changing room
Beyond that there could be a semi-final against Roger Federer, although the great Swiss could not take things lightly in his fourth round that was being played later in the day against Canadian Milos Raonic.
Even if Simon had been totally fit this is not a match he would have relished, given that he has lost nine times out of 10 to Murray in his career and that his sole success came on their first meeting more than five years ago.
He was carrying the four hours and 47 minutes that it took to see off Gael Monfils in his previous round in his relatively spindley legs that usually ferry him in nimble fashion around the court and allow him to deliver nicely timed and often creative groundstrokes.
Take that: Murray fires another one back at Simon on his way to a comfortable victory Down Under
So it was really a question of Murray getting his head round the circumstances of the match, which can be a trickier exercise than expected when you know that there is something not quite right about your opponent.
The 25 year-old Scot clearly had it in his mind that he was going to make the classy Frenchman do lots of running.
In fact if any ATP Tour player could pick anyone they would rather play less when tired then Murray would be right at the top of the list, such is his skill at 'ragging' opponents around the court.
Blown away: Simon could not cope with Murray in Melbourne
He broke Simon straightaway but then immediately handed the advantage back when he was broken back to love.
Although he has gone through the tournament with a record of 12-0 in sets his serve has been threatened a little too often for comfort, notably by Ricardas Berankis in the previous round.
Hisense Arena, the secondary court of Melbourne Park, was hardly rocking but then it rarely does, being the least atmospheric of any major court at the Grand Slams and better suited to things like cycling, for which it is also designed.
Murray mania: The Scot had his fan club backing him during his win over Simon
Murray broke for 2-1 and had two more points to go 5-2 up which went begging but then he broke again to take the first set in 36 minutes.
Simon was making a token effort to try and finish points off quickly and showed some of his glorious touch around the net but there was no way he could compete from the back court with the world No 3.
Despite that he pulled Murray back from 2-0 down in the second, helped by the British player making an awful hash of a simple overhead.
That's my boy: Murray's girlfriend Kim Sears enjoyed his victory over Simon on Monday
Support: Simon wasn't alone during his heavy defeat by Murray
Struggling to quite flex his legs, Simon hit a limp sliced forehand into the net to allow his opponent to go 3-1 up and from there the set was wrapped up in 31 minutes.
In the third the Frenchman began to have rubs on his thighs at the changeovers, a dubious practice that stretches the boundaries of the rules, and which was seen in the Djokovic-Wawrinka epic the previous night. On this occasion it mattered little and the match was quickly wrapped up.
It was not a contest that will live long in the memory and perhaps Murray would like to reach for a higher gear now he is three matches away from the title – not that this meeting really allowed him to.
Feeling the strain: Simon required treatment as Murray battered him during their fourth-round tie
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