If Andy Murray wins the 2015 French Open, he will have to beat the usual suspects – and, if he should do so, he might spare a thought for the young Australian who has pushed him to the point of productive irritation in practice this week.
Murray has long regarded Thanasi Kokkinakis with the sort of respect a seasoned boxer reserves for a sparring partner who may one day try to rip his head off in a world title fight. As it happens, the fast-improving South Australian teenager is in Novak Djokovic’s quarter of the draw and would have to beat either his countryman Bernard Tomic or the eternal under-achiever at his home tournament, Richard Gasquet, to play the world No1 in the third round.