The ranking has climbed in tune with the victories, and a win over Clement would have pushed him inside the world’s top 100 That mark will be surpassed soon enough. With sense, Murray has made these statistics stepping stones to something more important, and since first venturing on to the grass of Queen’s he has played 33 matches in the big boys’ leagues, winning 25 and losing just eight.He has appeared in two Grand Slams, four ATP tournaments and four of the lesser-level Challenger events, of which he won two. How good will Murray be when he manages to land his first serve on target regularly, when more hours in action against the biggest in the sport hone his output to assure minimum wastage of effort?Murray is still growing physically as well as mentally so, despite all those British crossed fingers, it was to be expected that the demands of five matches in 10 days in the humid heat of Flushing Meadows would exact the sort of toll which halted him in that fifth set on Friday evening as if he had run into a brick wall, which metaphorically he had.Since Murray thrust himself under the noses of the sporting public at the beginning of June by parlaying a wild card at Queen’s Club into a place in the last 16 he has put behind him a junior career in which he was ranked the world No 2 and is still, in fact, the reigning Under-18 champion at the US Open for a few more days. The body will, in its own good time, catch up with the brain, and then we will have a tennis player arguably better than Tim Henman at his peak, as good as anyone Britain has produced since Fred Perry in his pomp. The wonderful thing is that Murray firmly believes this, too, so that is half the battle.Despite that aching shoulder, he hammered 26 aces past Clement, lobbed the Frenchman until he must have felt like gibbering, and changed the pace and angle of his shots with grace aforethought. So does Marat Safin, if not the mindset to accompany them, and Murray is rapidly carving himself a place in the very finest company. He possesses what John McEnroe calls “natural feel” for the game, a quality which cannot be taught, and his range of shot selection is as uncanny as it is impressive.Like Safin, but unlike Federer, Murray can also be bloody-minded.

Cantankerous may not be the right word for the young man, but he certainly knows how to stick up for himself and projects a belief in his own ability which the old alley cat Jimmy Connors would recognise.In brief, keep on going for it, Andy. However, in reducing an experienced and wily opponent like Arnaud Clement to the very brink of despair, the Scot unveiled once more that armoury of natural, flowing skills possessed by few in the sport.

Roger Federer has those skills. The acknowledged risk factor for athletes who take giant strides is that the body may not be up to the journey on which the mind has embarked. There was, inevitably, disappointment for Murray, his advisers and his growing band of admirers that the tall teenager’s legs could not carry him through a fifth set at the US Open on Friday evening and into the third round. But the spirit has emerged shining bright, the talent is intact and the road towards becoming Britain’s best tennis player stretches invitingly open. So it is with Andy Murray, whose meteoric rise through the rankings in three torrid months has brought him aching legs, damaged ankle, shoulder problems and an upset stomach. Following the 13th-minute sin-binning of the home flanker John Muldoon and the Wales lock Robert Sidoli for an off-the-ball scuffle, Paul Warwick slotted the resultant penalty.After Robinson missed a chance to reply early in the second half, drilling a drop-goal attempt wide, McPhillips scorched through for his try.Warwick did well to convert and the Australian held his nerve to kick a 74th-minute drop goal, sandwiched between a brace of Robinson penalties, to keep up Connacht’s record of winning every one of their opening league games since 2001..

However, Connacht got closest to making a breakthrough on the half-hour when David Slemen and Darren Yapp broke deep into Blues’ territory only for the move to fall apart.By that stage, Connacht had levelled. Shoddy set-piece play allowed fly-half Robinson to kick Cardiff into a sixth-minute lead and the visitors, with nine internationals in their line-up, looked dangerous. A second-half try by Conor McPhillips enabled Connacht to launch their Celtic League campaign with a 13-9 win over Cardiff Blues at the Sportsground in Galway. An Ireland debut tantalisingly eluded the 24-year-old wing in June when he was the only squad member not to taste Test action against Japan.
But McPhillips underlined his class when he spotted a gap in the Welsh side’s rush defence after 53 minutes to run in the game’s only try and set up Connacht’s first home win in nearly eight months.Cardiff, who trailed 10-3 after McPhillips’ effort, kept battling and narrowed the gap to four points, but they had only three penalties from Nicky Robinson to show for their efforts at the finish.An error-ridden opening period saw Connacht, who lost loose-head prop Ray Hogan to injury before the kick-off, struggle up front.

He was here, as a spectator, but it could be another month before he dips his toe in the water.Wasps: M van Gisbergen; P Sackey, A Erinle (F Waters, 65), S Abbott, T Voyce; A King, E Reddan (M Dawson, 59); T Payne, R Iba?(B Gotting, 56), P Bracken (J Dawson, 30), M Purdy (T Rees, 22), R Birkett, J Hart (capt), J Worsley, J O’Connor.Saracens: T Castaign?; R Haughton, B Johnston (D Harris, 65), K Sorrell, D Scarbrough; G Jackson, A Dickens (M Rauluni, 58); K Yates (N Lloyd, 33), M Cairns (S Byrne, 53), C Visagie (Yates, 72), K Chesney (I Fullarton, 46), H Vyvyan (capt), B Russell (A Sanderson, 22), B Skirving, D Seymour.Referee: D Rose (Warwickshire).. The only try they conceded was as a result of a wheeled scrum from which Ben Skirving, with his opposite number in a twist, galloped 30 yards to the line, brushing off Sackey on the way.Sarries were 11-10, ahead but in the heat it was almost a mirage. Van Gisbergen kicked Wasps ahead again before Waters ultimately exploited Jackson’s pass.Wasps were missing the familiar figure of Trevor Leota, who has gone to pastures new, and Saracens were missing Farrell. The Saracens defence has been water-tightened by Mike Ford, one of the Lions coaches The Wasps rearguard is even more efficient.

Joe Worsley flattened Ben Russell and Martin Purdy also hit the deck, both players being replaced. It took Wasps half an hour to score a try and it came from Tom Voyce, who darted over from broken play. “It gives us something to build on.” Even Gatland came up with better lines than that.Before a crowd of 35,000 – this double- header business has been a good idea – Jackson kicked Saracens into a 6-0 lead with penalties in the seventh and 14th minutes. This is where they end up in May to land the Premiership title, and who is to say they won’t return here again in nine months’ time.Wasps have been very quiet on the recruitment front although, of course, they have Ian McGeechan as head coach in place of Gatland, who returned to his native New Zealand with garlands galore “It’s good to start with a win,” McGeechan said. The wing was odds on to complete a spectacular score before he was collared by Haughton just short of the line. In the ensuing scramble the prop Kevin Yates – fair play to him for getting back – smashed into Sackey, who at that point did not have the ball. A yellow card for Yates and advantage to Wasps, who took it by sending Fraser Waters clean through the middle for a try at the posts.It enabled the hosts to complete a satisfactory victory by two goals and three penalties to a goal and two penalties Twickenham is Wasps’ second home.