Just a week after declaring himself insufficiently fit to represent his country in a Davis Cup match where his services were imperative, Andy Murray stands to collect the fifth ATP title of his career today.

If his knee has been a problem throughout his four-match progression to the final of the Open 13 event in Marseilles, it has not been obvious. The world No 11 has dropped just one set all week, and France’s last hope, Paul-Henri Mathieu, was clearly no match for him in their semi-final.

Murray won through 6-2 6-2, an emphatic victory by any standards and shorter than any confrontation he would have contemplated against Argentina’s David Nalbandian or Agustin Calleri on the clay of Buenos Aires, where the hopelessly outclassed Great Britain team succumbed 4-1 in their world group tie.

The fourth seed, aware that his world ranking needs some bolstering with the prospect of the points accrued last year by retaining his title in San Jose dropping off the ATP computer next week, has been in fast-track form.

Friday’s quarter-final against another Frenchman, Nicolas Mahut, who reached the final of the Artois Championships at Queen’s Club in London last summer, was a brief affair, lasting just an hour and a quarter. Even though Mathieu is ranked 23 places higher than Mahut, at 21st in the world, and had ended Gilles Simon’s hopes of keeping hold of the title on Friday, Murray’s win yesterday was even quicker – 62 minutes.

He was so determined to make swift work of the opponent he beat 11 months ago in the Masters Series event in Miami that he adopted an aggressive air from the outset and broke Mathieu’s serve at the first opportunity, a helpful double-fault aiding the early breakthrough. Confidence is a big part of any player’s game, but Mathieu is particularly brittle when pressure is exerted against him. Mindful of the fact, Murray rarely let up the barrage.

The British No 1 did not serve particularly well, getting only 42% of his first serves into play, but one aspect he worked on tirelessly under the guidance of Canadian technical coach Louis Cayer during the off-season was his second serve, and his industry reaped dividends. At times Murray’s form seemed close to perfection, with his all-court game clearly at its most effective in an indoor environment with no variables such as sun or wind.

His fourth ace of the afternoon sent him to three match points against the 26-year-old Mathieu. The No 8 seed survived the first, but he netted a backhand on the second to usher the 20-year-old Scot through to today’s final.

Murray will be aiming for his second title of the year to add to the Qatar Open he captured in Doha in January, defeating Stanislas Wawrinka.