Murray happy to save energy
The fifth seed has hardly been extended so far, winning his opening three matches in straight sets. Murray was briefly tested in the opening set of his 7-5 6-1 6-4 victory over the 64th-ranked Florent Serra, when he was twice broken, but it was otherwise another short afternoon under the Australian sun for the 22-year-old Scot.
"I'm happy to have won in three sets in all of the matches," said Murray.
"I was just saying that it's important to have tight situations in matches like the first set where it got quite close at points. Against (second-round opponent Marc) Gicquel in the third set it got close. I came through all the sort of tough moments in the match.
"I'm happy to save as much energy as possible. It was hot. So it was nice to get off the court quickly."
Murray's next opponent John Isner will certainly be a step up after the American upset 12th seed Gael Monfils 6-1 4-6 7-6 (7/4) 7-6 (7/5) to progress on the Margaret Court Arena.
The 24-year-old's serve is one of the most feared on the men's tour and, after graduating through the American collegiate system, his ranking has steadily fallen over the past couple of years to his current career-high of 28.
Isner won his first career title in Auckland earlier this month when he defeated Arnaud Clement in the final and Murray admitted he would be his biggest challenge so far.
"Isner is playing really well. He won the tournament in Auckland," he said.
"The guy is 6ft 9in and he has one of, if not the best serve on the tour. I'll have to return well."