The backdrop may have changed, but the opponent and the result were the same. Andy Murray faced Philipp Kohlschreiber in the early hours in the Madrid Open, beating him in three sets. With several matches overrunning, the British number one eventually started his second round tussle at 01:12 local time. As the German seemed to tire towards the conclusion of the match, Murray took control to back up his victory over the same opponent in the recent Munich Open final. The Scot will hope he recovers his energy levels quickly, after his 6-4 3-6 6-0 ordeal that ended at 03:00 in the morning.

After waiting around for much of the night for his match to begin, Murray may have been wondering whether he would get on to court at all. The fact that he was playing the German world number 24 so early in the tournament probably put his success in Munich into context. Madrid by comparison features many of the top seeds, the German event did not.

Marcel Granollers up next for Murray

He will need to up his game to go far in this competition, with his immediate focus being on Marcel Granollers in his next match. Although a wildcard entrant for the tournament, the Spaniard may give Murray some problems. Their head to head is 5-2 in the British player's favour and he has been the winner in their last two matches.

The Spaniard though will be looking to draw on the two victories he has had in the past, both of which were on clay.

Federer is toppled

There had been plenty for the Spanish crowd to absorb prior to the number three seed's entrance. Roger Federer was one of the players to suffer on the clay courts of Madrid, losing to the 20-year-old Australian Nick Kyrgios.

Since Novak Djokovic choosing to miss the Spanish event, Federer had been the top seed. Try as he might though, he could not shake off his tenacious Aussie rival. Their epic struggle eventually edged Kyrgios' way with an exhilarating 6-7 7-6 7-6 (14-12) triumph.

The 33-year-old Swiss Tennis maestro put his defeat down to not being able to cope with Kyrgios' excellent first serve.

A low return of just 18 points from 85 first serves faced, seemed to add credence to his conclusion. The young Aussie will now move on to another (likely) battle of the big servers with the tall American John Isner in round three. More tie-breaks would seem likely in that one.

Nadal may now be favourite

With Federer out, Rafael Nadal may now just be the marginal favourite to lift the title. This is after all an event on clay, his favourite surface. It is also in Madrid, where the Spanish crowd can give vociferous support to their own player and he has claimed the title four times in the past. The world number four had few problems beating the American Steve Johnson 6-4 6-3. Next up for him in the third round will be Simone Bolelli from Italy.