Update: World No. 4 Andy Murray Collects Victory vs. Florian Mayer

The no. 4 player in the world, Andy Murray, defeated German No. 1 Florian Mayer in three sets today. The comparative aspect of the three sets made them decidedly uneven.

The match score was 1-6, 6-1 and 6-1. Mayer managed eight games, the last two games of which were scored in sets two and three.  

As we mentioned in previous articles, second serve points won enters heavily into a match decided through the numbers. 

Mayer was at 26 percent of second serve points won, while Murray was at 53 percent.

Murray went on to mention that, "It is important because it is nice to do well in tournaments abroad."

The ATP World tour staff said that the last Briton to reach the final four at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay court tournament had been Pat Hughes.

Hughes finished runner-up to Andre Merlin in the finals. Merlin had a nice career playing Roland-Garros from 1931-1937, reaching a round high quarterfinals in 1936.

Hughes was a member of the British Davis Cup team from 1929-1936 and was the only player to win in singles and doubles at the Italian Championships in 1933.

His doubles partner was Fred Perry, who was a world No. 1 for five years and holder of 10 Grand slams. Murray went on to laud the history of this event in Rome, digging back to its history in the early 1900s.

"This tournament has been around for a long, long time and it has got a lot of history. They have always had great players every year,” explained the Briton.

To draw to a conclusion, another few numbers jump out at you with some significance. They are second in return points won, 74 percent for Murray to 47 percent for Mayer.

Sometimes it’s just the little things when compounded that have a great effect on match outcomes. You could definitely point to your second points saved, won and converted for today’s match.