Gilles Simon unflustered by Andy Murray showdown

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Andy Murray will be pleased he was not detained too long on Centre Court today when defeating Finland's Jarkko Nieminen to set up a third round showdown with Frenchman Gilles Simon.

Simon will be thoroughly rested when he comes up against Murray as he did not even need to pick up his racquet after his Ukrainian opponent Illya Marchenko withdrew because of a shoulder injury.

The 25-year–old Frenchman has himself been wracked with injuries since this time last year when he lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero and had not won a tour match all year until Monday and his straight sets win over Spain's Guillermo Alcaide.

Simon seemed undaunted by the extra pressure of facing a partisan crowd cheering on Murray: "I think Murray is playing to the maximum. I think he's doing good."

When asked about restoring some Gallic pride after his country's dismal showing in the World Cup he gave a very French shrug of the shoulder.

He added: "I don't care about the football. It's not the same sport. It's very different. Football is football."

Born in Nice, Simon could be a tricky obstacle to Murray's progress. In 2008 he claimed the illustrious scalps of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. He also plays the piano.

As a junior, he was inspired by Michael Chang, saying, "He showed me that you don't have to be tall in order to be a great player." Simon's fondness for taking the ball early has also led to pundits comparing his style to Andre Agassi.

Simon is currently ranked 32 in the world compared with his career best of six. He is seeded 26 here.