Murray hoping for off-key Nadal

ESPNstar.com - Saturday 6th September 2008
History may not be on Andy Murray's side, but he will go into the US Open semi-final intent on making a little of his own.
The 21-year-old Scot has not beaten new world number one Rafael Nadal in any of their five meetings to date.
Yet, as sixth-seeded Murray prepares for the first grand slam semi-final of his career, his Spanish opponent has handed him a big confidence booster.
Having come from a set down to defeat unseeded American Mardy Fish in the small hours of Thursday morning in New York, Nadal admitted he was not at the peak of his powers and needed to find some form.
The Spaniard - who is looking to add a third grand slam title this year to his French Open, Wimbledon and Olympic triumphs - said: "I'm not playing like two or three weeks ago in Beijing.
"But if you're in the semi-finals, there has to be something good there. For sure, I'm doing well.
"The important thing I have another match for try to improve a little bit more.
"I hope be at 100% for the semi-finals."
Saturday's clash, should it escape the gloomy forecasts of heavy rain throughout the day as Tropical Storm Hanna sweeps the American East Coast, will be just as much a milestone in Nadal's career as Murray's.
The Spaniard is also making his first appearance in the last four of the US Open, completing a sweep of reaching the semi-finals of all four grand slams in 2008.
For Murray, another parallel from which to draw encouragement is that Nadal's only defeat in the majors came at the Australian Open, when the victor was last-four debutant Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Yet, the Scot is concentrating on his own improvement at the end of a year that has brought three tournament victories, including his first Masters Series success in Cincinnati, as well as wins over both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
It has led Murray to revise the goals he set for himself at the start of 2008.
"I wanted to try to make the Masters Cup this year, and I obviously missed that by one match last year, even though I missed three and a half months with the wrist injury," the British number one said.
"So I'm happy that I'm pretty sure I've confirmed myself in the Masters Cup.
"But I think how you do in slams is how you're remembered in tennis, and I wanted to improve my record in them.
"I've definitely done that this year and hopefully I can keep it going in the next match."
Regardless of the result against Nadal, Murray will move up two places in the world rankings to number four.
There is still much to achieve, though, not least becoming the first Briton since Greg Rusedski in 1997 to reach a grand slam final.
Tim Henman had a chance in New York four years ago but was blown away by Federer en route to the first of his four consecutive US Open titles.
Now it is up to Murray to stop Nadal from attempting to begin a similar run.
The Scot reaches the last four on the back of some character-testing matches, including stiff challenges from Michael Llodra and Jurgen Melzer, both left handers like Nadal.
In the quarter-finals, he was given a different test, riding out a mid-match wobble to defeat Juan Martin Del Potro in four sets.
It is the sort of form which makes Murray much more than a rank outsider, something of which his next opponent is more than aware.
"I'm not playing against a guy whose ranking is 50 and for him being in the semi-finals is unbelievable," Nadal said when asked about Murray's lack of grand slam semi-final experience.
"He knows he can be in the semi-finals and he can win the title.
"It's his first semi-final in a grand slam, but he's played very important matches.
"It's going to be nothing strange for him."