...get ready for some hurtling tennis balls
Wednesday 20 January 2016 07:11, UK
The man with the fastest serve in world tennis, Sam Groth, will take on Britain's Andy Murray in the second round of the Australian Open on Thursday.
Big-serving Australian Groth recorded the world record serve of 163.4mph at the Busan Open in May 2012.
He moved into Wimbledon's history books with the tournament's second-fastest ever serve at 147mph in 2015, although he underwent surgery on his right foot to treat an ongoing nerve problem towards the back-end of last year.
The 6ft 4in New South Wales-born hitter struck 27 aces to beat Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in four sets and now takes on four-time finalist Murray who has a reputation of handling big-hitters.
With a world ranking of 67, 28-year-old Groth will be the clear underdog, but he has promised to approach the contest with nothing to lose, planning to serve hard and play aggressively in what will be their first ever meeting.
"He will make it tough for me because he has a different game style to a lot of the players now," said Murray.
Groth has an explosive serve. He generates incredible power through knee-bend thrust combined with leg drive, shoulder rotation, arm elevation and extension all within a swift motion from a short, but highly effective ball toss.
Murray has previously had to deal with the likes of Ivo Karlovic, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, John Isner and Kevin Anderson, but Groth will be a different challenge altogether and he'll have the added backing of the home crowd.
We will bring you all the news, views, reaction and opinion from the Australian Open over the next fortnight.
