Murray ready for Simon challenge

Andy Murray hopes his near-flawless start to Wimbledon will prove the perfect preparation for a potentially tricky third-round clash against Gilles Simon.

The Frenchman was ranked in the top 10 last year but has been troubled by a right knee injury for much of the last 12 months, and his two victories at Eastbourne last week were his first of the season on the ATP World Tour. Simon was given a walkover on Thursday when his opponent Illya Marchenko withdrew, while Murray overcame Jarkko Nieminen 6-3 6-4 6-2.

The Scot said of the pair's differing paths: "Everybody reacts differently to those circumstances. But, from my side, I was happy to play. It was good to stay in a rhythm. Obviously winning in three sets was good."

Murray has played Simon four times, winning their most recent three matches, which all came in 2008. But he remains wary of a player who has beaten Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

"It will be great," said the fourth seed. "He's a tough player. He was obviously in the top 10 last year but he's had a problem with his knee the last few months.

"He's beaten Federer a couple of times and had some tough matches with Djokovic. He was at the top of the game before he got hurt.

"He's a very difficult player to play against, very unorthodox. It will be a bit of a tough match if we both play well."