Andy Murray's dry sense of humour has been known to get lost in translation at times.

 

Today, it was out in full force in Abu Dhabi as he set up a match with Rafa Nadal, before stating: "I hope the matches get a bit easier from now on."

Playing Nadal can't be too many people's idea of an easy ride and whatever the result of their semi-final at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship today, Murray will know he has been in a fight.

Yesterday, Murray was involved in the longest match in the exhibition event's history, at just under two and a half hours, eventually getting the job done against Feliciano Lopez, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4.

"It was a tough match, very long," Murray said. "The last few games were very hard. I had a lot of match points, he had some break points and I just managed to get through.

"But it was a hard way to start the year. I hope the matches get a bit easier from now on."

As a first match of 2015, Murray will have been pleased with many elements of his game, even if his intensity ebbed and flowed at times.

That's no surprise in an event that does not count for ranking points but he will have been satisfied with his returns, his backhand and, at times, his serve, which appeared to have a little more zip and wrist-snap than he managed for much of last year.

Having arrived in Abu Dhabi after his customary training block in Florida, Murray looked fit and sharp, in his new Under Armour gear, after a winter switch from Adidas.

More importantly, he was moving well and running down everything and though he's likely to be a little stiff after his efforts, it was an encouraging start to a year he hopes will see him competing for grand slam titles once more.

In front of a very healthy crowd of around 4,500, which included his mum, Judy Murray, the world No 6 seemed at ease in a match played in a relaxed manner.

Early in the first set, Murray told Lopez to challenge one of his own serves that the umpire had overruled as out, and the grin on Murray's face when he was proven right said a lot about his state of mind.

An early break of serve gave him a 3-1 lead but as he often does, when he's not 100 per cent locked into matches, Murray handed the break straight back.

Having ended 2014 with a drubbing by Roger Federer, Murray will have been extra-keen to open with a win and he played a superb tiebreak to win the first set, taking it 7-1 with a rare beast, a second-serve ace.

His serve blew a little hot and cold and Lopez, with his own fine serve and willingness to move forward, began to get a foothold in the match.

In the build-up to the event, Murray had hinted that he might show a few tweaks to his game and certainly there was a little more intent on his forehand, while his second serve had more spin.

But Lopez grew in confidence and a poor Murray game allowed him to level the match.

When Murray broke immediately at the start of the deciding set, it seemed he would pull away for victory but again he was broken back straightaway.

Serving first was an advantage to Lopez but at 4-4, Murray suddenly turned on the style and a series of brilliant returns gave him the break.

Given what had gone before, closing out the match was never likely to be easy and Murray needed four match points to finish it off.

The reward will be a match against Nadal, who is returning after missing the last weeks of the season with a wrist injury and who claims he does not know what to expect from himself in his first match back.

Murray should know what to expect, though, having warmed up with him in Abu Dhabi, not to mention their 20 previous meetings.

A nagging back injury has also been a concern for the Spaniard, with unconfirmed reports that he has had stem cells placed in his spine "to regenerate cartilage and produce and anti-inflammatory effect".

In the other match, the Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka saw off Nicolas Almagro of Spain 6-3, 6-2 to set up a semi-final against world No.1 Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic begins 2015 as the big favourite for the Australian Open but he will have to balance his job with fatherhood having had his first child just before the season-ending World Tour Finals.

In the first instance, that means travelling to Abu Dhabi, and then on to Australia, without his family.