Saturday 7 May 2016 15:21, UK
Andy Murray won the Madrid Open last year but must fight his way through the world's best players to defend his crown.
Murray defeated clay court king Rafael Nadal 12 months ago to lift the Madrid title, a prize he first collected eight years ago to stake his claim as a talent worth keeping an eye on.
Sky Sports have tried to plot Murray's route to this year's final...
The Czech defeated Vasek Pospisil for the right to play Murray, and interestingly owns a victory in their recent match. That was two years ago at Queen's, but Murray has an overall 5-2 winning record against the 37-year-old.
Traditionally, Murray doesn't adapt to the clay season particularly quickly so Stepanek's best chances of a shock result could lay with the Brit's rusty habits.
The Frenchman must first steer himself beyond Marcos Baghdatis then, in all likelihood, the unseeded Grigor Dimitrov to book a tie against Murray.
Simon is the 16th seed in Madrid but also has a very poor head-to-head record against the Dunblane man. Murray has won 13 of their 15 matches - Simon won their very first meeting 11 years ago but also won in Rotterdam last year.
Murray has won all four of their meetings at the Madrid Open and has also notched up clay court wins in Hamburg and Monte Carlo against this possible opponent.
The Czech player is a long-time rival and an ominous potential opponent should both men secure quarter-final spots.
Personal animosity stems from Berdych's use of Dani Vallverdu, who previously worked with Murray, as his coach. Murray's future wife Kim Sears became embroiled last year after swearing during a previous match between the pair.
The world No 8 Berdych is on the wrong end of a 6-7 record against Murray, which is a very respectable tally considering one of his wins was during the 2013 Madrid Open. In total, three of Berdych's wins have been on clay. Expect more fireworks if both players advance this far.
The greatest ever clay court player's hopes of making the semi-final will have been boosted by Roger Federer's late withdrawal - they were due to collide at the quarter-final stage.
The path has become clearer for Nadal to force a rematch against Murray of last year's final. The Spaniard holds a remarkable record against the Brit given the struggles with injury he has suffered in recent years - Nadal has won 17 and lost just six, and has won four of the last five.
Murray may have beaten the clay king on his own patch last year, but Nadal has won their other nine meetings on the red dirt.
Intriguingly, the Djokovic-Murray wrote its first ever chapter at the 2006 Madrid Open before either man had reached the pinnacle of the sport that they now dominate.
A decade ago, the mighty Serb won the last-16 clash and has won all three of their clay court match since - a worrying trend which Murray must try to buck in 2016.
Djokovic, before entertaining the thought of this game, must negotiate a kind route into the semi-finals where No 7 seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is the most daunting test.
Assuming Djokovic reaches the last match as expected, the world No 1 will aim for a fourth consecutive victory against Murray - he has won 11 of their last 12 matches dating back to the Brit's famous 2012 Wimbledon triumph.
Watch the Madrid Open on Sky Sports until the final on Sunday May 8.
