Feliciano Lopez ready for battle with Andy Murray

The Spaniard has reached the last eight twice before at the All England Club but is unseeded this time and not the man Murray would have expected to face at this stage.

Lopez is a talented grass-court player, though, and could be a danger if he can find the sort of form he displayed to defeat three-time finalist Andy Roddick in straight sets in round three.

The 29-year-old had a much tougher time in the fourth round, battling back from two sets down to see off Polish qualifier Lukasz Kubot, and he has his sights set on a first win over Murray in five meetings.

Lopez said: "He's a great player. I know that if I want to beat Andy here, I have to play good. But I have had a couple of good wins during this tournament.

"I beat Andy Roddick. I had a great comeback from two sets to love (against Kubot). I have to believe that I can win. I'm ready for the battle."

Despite his win over Roddick, Lopez has generated the most headlines this week for his nickname, Deliciano, given to him by Murray's mother Judy, who is an ardent admirer of the Spaniard.

Lopez knows which side she will be on today, though, saying: "It is going to be a family member playing against Deliciano. She won't be supporting me any more."

Murray had a special guest at the start of his practice session yesterday when US Open golf champion Rory McIlroy came along for a chat with the British number one and John McEnroe.

The Northern Irishman, who was meeting Murray for the first time, is friends with the 24-year-old's potential semi-final opponent Rafael Nadal, but he was in no doubt who he would be supporting were they to clash.

"I'd love to see Andy get his first slam," McIlroy told the BBC. "If it's Rafa against Andy - Rafa's got 10 of them so I want Andy to get his first one."

Murray had a much easier time than Lopez in his fourth-round match, beating talented Frenchman Richard Gasquet in straight sets, and he is confident he can handle the expectation in a match he will be expected to win.

The fourth seed said: "There's always pressure. I think once you get to this stage of the tournament, whoever's getting there is going to have confidence in their game.

"They're going to have been playing very well. You've just got to go out there and play, have the right game plan, get the job done.

"Lopez beat Roddick in straight sets. He serves very well, has a good slice backhand, plays different to a lot of the Spaniards. He likes coming forward a lot. I'll have a lot of passing shots to hit and I'll need to return better."