Andy Murray is more afraid of losing his wedding ring than a tennis match these days but that did not stop him from storming to a 10th successive win on clay at the Rome Masters on Wednesday.
Fresh from winning back-to-back titles in Munich and Madrid, Murray was once seen sporting his wedding ring tied around his shoelaces as he beat France's Jeremy Chardy 6-4 6-3.
“I won’t lose it if it’s tied to my shoelace,” Murray told Sky Sport Italia. “As soon as the match is over I put it back on. If I’d keep it in my bag I’d have lost it already.”
Murray, who married Kim Sears last month, faced two break points in the sixth game of the opening set as Chardy tried to create another early upset after knocking out Roger Federer in the same round here 12 months ago.
But Murray held on to breeze through the rest of the match by outfoxing Chardy with his touch, powerful serve and backhand dropshots.
“I felt a little tired at the start but my condition got better as the match went on,” added Murray, who had never won a clay court title until his recent golden run.
"I'm a little surprised with my clay results. I hope to keep it up (my form) until Roland Garros. "
John Isner also progressed following a 7-6 (6) 6-4 win against Argentina's Leonardo Mayer. The American served 11 aces and did not face any break points in the match.
In the women's event, second seed Simona Halep crushed American Alison Riske 6-3 6-0, while seventh seed Ana Ivanovic fell to Russia's Daria Gavrilova after a three-hour battle.
The former French Open champion saved seven match points but eventually fell 5-7 7-6 (2) 7-6 (7).
