Murray still yet to lose a set in Australian Open after sailing past Lopez

In temperatures that had more in common with his native Scotland than the Sahara type conditions seen this week, Andy Murray looked very much at home as he progressed to the Australian Open fourth round.

The Wimbledon champion took two hours and 15 minutes in blustery, almost chilly weather to beat the No 26 seed Feliciano Lopez 7-6 6-4 6-2 and make it through to second week here yet again.

Murray earned himself what looks a dream last sixteen draw against French veteran Stephane Robert, the world No 119 and surprise package in his portion of the  field, who only got into the tournament as a ‘lucky loser’ from qualifying when Germany’s Phillip Kohlschreiber pulled out.

'It was very tricky in the first couple of matches but these were beautiful conditions to play in,” said Murray after beating the Spanish southpaw. 'I grew up playing a lot against lefthanders because of my brother, I enjoy playing them.

'Today was a big step up for me. I have a good record against him but he's not an easy guy to play so it was a good test, I did well.'

Murray added: 'With each match you're going to play better. It doesn't happen straightaway even though I've played thousands of matches in my life.

'The guys on my team have worked very hard to get me back on the court after the last three months. We talk about coaches a lot but those guys deserve a lot of credit.'

In many ways this was an ideal encounter for him as he tries to catch up on the matchplay he has missed since having back surgery. Lopez provided a tough test in the first set, competed well in the second but was gradually overwhelmed in the third.

Murray has always known that he would have to play his way in to this event and that has happened, although by the quarter finals he might even wish that things had been tougher.

It was dramatically cooler than yesterday, with the mercury barely nudging 20 after spending the past four days up into the forties.

That might have explained Murray’s strange body language at the start, which saw him look rather stiff and unhappy as he began by being broken, a situation he repaired immediately.

His regular tugs at his shirt around the hip area suggested there might be something wrong with his lower back again, or it could have been some nerves as well. Lopez is a difficult customer with his athletic forays to the net, and Murray will have well remembered the tough US Open encounter with him in 2012 en route to winning the title, which he just about eked out in four sets.

Murray settled in and created four break point opportunities at 4-3, all of which were saved by excellent responses from the Lopez serve, one of them being a 134 mph ace. It was the same story at 6-5 when two set points came about.

In the tiebreak, however, the 26 year-old Scot made no mistake, giving a textbook example of how to play a set decider. He took it 7-2 and then profited when a deflated Lopez, in stark contrast to what had gone before, sent down a double fault on break point in the first game.

Murray held on very solidly from there and did not face a break point thereafter, although he never looked entirely happy with himself. Ivan Lendl sat with a towel draped around his shoulders – today it was to keep warm, yesterday it would have been to wipe away sweat.

The third set was entirely straightforward as he cruised towards an eight successive win against the 32 year-old heart-throb nicknamed ‘Deliciano’. Murray has not lost a set in three matches, and can be delighted with that after coming here with only limited expectations.