andy murray
Andy Murray comes into the tournament on the back of a maiden China Open title win Getty

Andy Murray takes on Steve Johnson in the men's singles second round clash of the 2016 China Open on Wednesday (12 October).

Where to watch live

Match starts at 1pm BST. Live coverage of the game will be available in the UK on Sky Sports 3 and Sky Sports 3 HD. Click here to watch the match via live stream.

Overview

World number two Andy Murray comes into the tournament on a high after winning his first China Open last week. The Scot is a two-time champion at the Shanghai Masters, securing back-to-back titles in 2010 and 2011, but since then he has failed to impress at Shanghai.

Murray has a good chance of reclaiming the title here considering both Djokovic and Nadal are returning from injury and loss of form, but the hectic schedule might just go against Murray, as he has been on the road for literally an entire year.

While the wear-and-tear would affect his game, he is the favourite at Shanghai and is expected to cruise past his opponent in the second round.

Steve Johnson has not lived up to his talent so far, but has one ATP title to his name at Nottingham, which he won earlier this year. The American has a big serve and a big forehand, which is dangerous and could trouble opponents, but he is nowhere as versatile or talented as Murray.

The world number 24 does not have a good record against the Scot and has lost out on the previous two occasions that they met. An upset here looks unlikely given the form Murray has been in this season.

Betting odds (betfair)

  • Andy Murray to win: 1/10
  • Steve Johnson to win: 13/2

Head-to-head

The duo have faced each other twice in ATP tours and Grand slam events in the past with Murray winning both those encounters. They last time they played against each other was in the quarter-final of the 2016 Rio Olympics, with the Scot winning the game 6-0, 4-6, 7-6.

Shanghai Masters history

Murray and Johnson have faced each other once at Shanghai in round of 32 in 2015, with the former beating the American 6-2, 6-4.

Andy Murray England China