Murray hopes to turn up heat against Tomic

MIAMI (AFP) –

Andy Murray of Great Britain speaks to the press prior to his second round match at the Sony Open at Crandon Park Tennis Center on March 21, 2013 in Key Biscayne, Florida.

World No. 3 Andy Murray will try to turn up the heat when he faces rising Aussie Bernard Tomic in his second-round opener at the Miami ATP Masters.

The Scot, who thrilled British fans with his Olympic singles gold in London last year and followed up that emotional win with a US Open triumph, thinks he’s well prepared to do battle in the heat and humidity of Miami thanks to his training base here.

“I think it should help,” Murray said. “I have trained in these conditions a lot.”

He finds the south Florida climate more congenial than the dry desert heat of Indian Wells, where he fell in the quarter-finals to eventual runner-up Juan Martin del Potro last week in the first Masters series tournament of the season.

“I find the conditions quite tricky in Indian Wells — extremely different from the conditions from here, how I train and practice,” Murray said.

The 20-year-old Tomic, who won his first ATP title at Sydney in January, booked his second-round match against second-seeded Murray with a 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) victory over French qualifier Marc Gicquel.

Murray and Tomic have played once before, with Murray posting a 6-3, 6-2 victory in Brisbane last year.

While Murray said he isn’t that familiar with how Tomic’s game had progressed since then, he was expecting a tough match.

“He’s a very, very talented player,” Murray said. “He makes it tough for everyone. He’s got a very unorthodox game style.”