French Open: Andy Murray holds nerve to reach second round after beating veteran Stepanek in five-setter

Scot was two sets down on Monday and two points from losing but persevered to earn a place in the second round

Andy Murray completed his recovery from two sets down to take his place in the second round in Paris (Getty)

Never rule out Andy Murray. For the ninth time in his career the 29-year-old Scot dug himself out of a hole from two sets down to reach the second round of the French Open here today, but only after he had been desperately close to defeat.

Murray twice went within two points of going out of the tournament before beating Radek Stepanek 3-6, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3, 7-5.

“It could turn out to be one of the biggest wins of my career,” a relieved Murray said afterwards.

“To get through that match was really, really important for me. It could easily have gone the other way.”

Murray was probably referring to the fact that, given his recent clay-court form, this year could be his best chance of winning the French Open.

However, it was also apparent that the last few days have been particularly difficult for the 29-year-old Scot.

His pre-tournament preparations were not helped by the bad weather and he described the win over Stepanek, which was spread over two days, as “pretty stressful”.

The world No 2 has also had to cope with the fall-out from interviews given to the French media in recent days by Amelie Mauresmo, his former coach, and by Murray himself.

Radek Stepanek was two points from beating the second seed at Roland Garros on Tuesday (Getty)

They have generated huge interest in his on-court behaviour and in particular his shouting and ranting in the general direction of his entourage.

Mauresmo, whose split with Murray was announced just over a fortnight ago, said in her interview that the Scot was a “complex” character and that the difference between his persona on and off the court was “disconcerting”.

Murray, in a separate interview, admitted that he sometimes felt embarrassed when he saw TV pictures of his on-court behaviour.

However, he also said that he usually played better when he expressed his emotions on court and expected his entourage to support him through those difficult moments.

After his victory over Stepanek, Murray was keen to point out that his interview had been conducted the day before the publication of Mauresmo’s and that in no way had he been responding to her comments.

He insisted they had not fallen out and still had a good relationship.

Murray also stressed that when they agreed to end their relationship during a meeting in Madrid earlier this month, his on-court behaviour had not been discussed.

He reiterated that the reason for the split had been the fact that she was unable to devote enough time to coaching him.

“In Madrid we didn't discuss that once,” Murray said. “For sure, when we were working together we discussed many things on the court, and there were times when, like with all of my coaches, they said: ‘You need to concentrate more on the match.

When I'm losing I get frustrated. When I'm winning, I'm happier. I don't know if that's complex or not

&#13; <p>Andy Murray attempts a bit of self-analysis after his first round victory at the French Open</p>&#13;

"Stop directing your frustration at the box and being distracted from what's going on on the court.’ But to say that that's why we stopped working together is untrue.”

Asked to respond to Mauresmo’s comment that he is a “complex” character, Murray said: “Away from the court, probably not. On the court, yes.

"When I'm losing I get very frustrated. When I'm winning, obviously I'm happier. I don't know if that's complex or not.”

He added: “There are also some good attributes that I have on the court, too. In my opinion I displayed them in abundance today and yesterday. I fought extremely hard from a very, very difficult position.

"Yes, I was getting frustrated, but I gave everything to try to win and got myself out of a situation that not all players would have been able to get themselves out of. I fight through to the end in all of the matches.”

Murray had indeed shown many of his best battling qualities in winning a match at Roland Garros from two sets down for the third time in his career.

He had completed half his recovery mission the previous evening, when he took the third set and led 4-2 in the fourth before play was called off for the day because of bad light.

Stepanek, nevertheless, continued to push Murray to the limit with a performance that was remarkable for a 37-year-old who missed most of last year through injury.

An old-style serve-and-volley player with a beautiful touch, Stepanek kept Murray on his toes throughout with his intelligent mixture of crafty drop shots, disguised net approaches and exquisitely timed volleys.

When he left the court at the end of the match Murray joined in the crowd’s applause.

The former world No 8 was not only the oldest player in the men’s singles here but also the oldest man to compete in the singles at any Grand Slam event since 39-year-old Jimmy Connors lined up at the US Open in 1992.

The match resumed just after 1pm, some 14 hours after play had been halted the previous evening.

Under grey skies and in cool conditions, Court Philippe Chatrier was barely half full.

Having saved two break points in the first game of the day, Murray served out to take the fourth set and level the match. However, the fifth set was tight from the start.

When Murray served to stay in the match at 4-5 he twice went within two points of defeat but held his nerve.

In the following game it was Stepanek’s turn to get into difficulty, but the Czech was unable to find a way out of it.

A double fault, a netted backhand and two netted forehands presented Murray with the chance to serve out for the match.

Today was pretty stressful. It's never easy playing a match over two days

&#13; <p>The Scot felt the effects of his delayed victory</p>&#13;

In the following game Murray went 40-30 up, only to hit a double fault on his first match point.

On his second, however, Stepanek netted the sort of volley which he had been making all day.

“Today was tough,” Murray said afterwards. “It wasn't the best tennis. I didn't expect it to be pretty today. I just wanted to get through.”

He added: “It was obviously an extremely difficult match, very tricky, challenging. Today was pretty stressful. It's never easy playing a match over two days.”

Murray said the heavy conditions presented a big challenge. “It's very difficult to push guys back,” he said.

“I think players are hitting the ball relatively flat. It's not playing like a true clay-court right now because of how heavy it is.”

In the second round Murray will face Mathias Bourgue, who won the first Grand Slam match of his career when he beat Spain’s Jordi Samper-Montana 7-5, 7-6, 7-6.

The 22-year-old Frenchman, who stands at No 165 in the world rankings, broke into the world’s top 200 for the first time last summer.

Two years ago he was out of the game for six weeks after being stung by a stonefish at Noumea in New Caledonia.

However, he made such a full recovery that he went on to win six Futures tournaments in a row.

Aljaz Bedene is one of three Britons in the second round ot the men's singles (Getty)

Britain’s Aljaz Bedene, who had lost in the first round on his only two previous appearances here, reached the second round by beating Austria’s Gerald Melzer 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

Bedene, who is being coached on a temporary basis by Leon Smith, Britain’s Davis Cup captain, recovered from a slow start to dominate the latter stages of the match and earn a meeting with Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta.

“I think it's really important to come out as a winner,” Bedene said afterwards. “It wasn't easy. In the first few points I made two double faults.

"The first set wasn't the best, but then I stepped in more, played my game more. In the end I don't think I faced a break point in the last three sets, so that was helping. In general, I'm happy with the performance.”

With Kyle Edmund having won the previous evening, three British men are through to the second round here for the first time since 1975.