World No.4 Andy Murray goes head to head against No.33 seed Ivan Ljubicic, Friday June 24th, as Murray seeks his first Grand Slam title. Murray is a two-time semi-finalist who looks to become the first Brit to win it. Wimbledon oddsmakers have Andy Murray as a -900 moneyline favourite to beat Ivan Ljubicic who is listed as a +500 underdog. Be sure to get your 2011 Wimbledon: Andy Murray vs Ivan Ljubicic predictions in early.
Andy Murray continued his 2011 grass-court form Wednesday at the All England Club, defeating Tobias Kamke 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 in the second round of the 125th Wimbledon Championships. The recent AEGON Championships titlist was confident on serve, winning 74 per cent of his service points while only facing one break point to take the pair’s first meeting. "I served well, especially when I was behind in games," Murray said after his win. "It was quite windy on the court which made it tricky, and I thought he hit the ball very well from the back of the court. I could have returned a little bit better. But straight sets, so I've got to be pleased with that… I've got to improve for the next match." "He serves well. That always makes it difficult," said Murray. "I have to make sure I return well, which I did very well at Queen's. I'll need to do the same thing again on Friday."
Croatian Ivan Ljubicic was a 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 winner over Sergiy Stakhovsky and is in the third round of Wimbledon for the first time in his career. Ljubicic has had a solid 2011, reaching the latter rounds of the Monte Carlo clay court tournament. Ljubicic began the 2010 season with a third round finish at the Australian Open, losing to countryman Ivo Karlović. He also made the quarterfinals in the 2010 Dubai Tennis Championships where he lost to eventual champion and World No. 2 Novak Djokovic, in three sets. At the 2010 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, he got revenge by beating Djokovic 7-5, 6-3 in the fourth round. He proceeded to upset defending champion Rafael Nadal 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(1) in the semis, avenging his loss against him in the 2005 Madrid Masters final and sending Ivan to his fourth career Masters 1000 final. He successfully broke his trend of three previous final losses in these master series tournaments, here in Indian Wells by defeating American favorite Andy Roddick in the final 7-6(3), 7-6(5) to lift his first ever Masters Series trophy.
Head to Head: Series split 3-3
2010 Beijing China Hard Q Ljubicic, Ivan 6-3, 6-2
2009 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells CA, U.S.A. Hard Q Murray, Andy 7-5, 7-6(6)
2009 Rotterdam The Netherlands Hard R32 Murray, Andy 6-3, 6-2
2007 Doha Qatar Hard F Ljubicic, Ivan 6-4, 6-4
2006 ATP Masters Series Madrid Spain Hard R32 Murray, Andy 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
2006 Zagreb Croatia Carpet R32 Ljubicic, Ivan 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
Andy Murray vs Ivan Ljubicic
When: Friday June 24, 7:00 AM ET
Pick: Murray -900
Point-Spreads.com recommends you check out Wimbledon Odds before the Andy Murray vs Ivan Ljubicic match.
The Bottom Line: Should be a tough test for Murray, but with a hometown crowd he’ll pull out a win. Be sure to get your 2011 Wimbledon: Andy Murray vs Ivan Ljubicic predictions in early.
