British trio facing Italian job
Tim Henman knows he will need to tame the home crowd when he takes on Alessio di Mauro in the first round of the ATP Masters Series event in Rome today.
The British number three’s match at the Foro Italico is the first of three Anglo-Italian clashes coming up, with Andy Murray taking on Filipo Volandri tonight and Greg Rusedski facing Stefano Galvani in the second round.
Henman told his personal website www.timhenman.org: “He (Di Mauro) obviously knows his way around a clay court and I won’t be taking anything for granted.
“He’s also got the advantage of playing at home and the crowd will certainly be on his side, so I’ve got to try and take them out of the equation as quickly as possible.
“I reached the third round in Rome last year so I feel comfortable in the surroundings. The weather has been good so far and the courts tend to dry out quite quickly, so if we get to play in similar conditions then hopefully that will suit my game a bit more.”
Rusedski overcame clay specialist Tommy Robredo in three sets to progress to the second round in the Italian capital.
The British number two’s serve was slow to get going but he recovered to win 5-7 6-3 6-4.
