The LTA announced yesterday that it had clearly defined its assets. Well, that's a start. The search now begins in earnest - and is supposed to take a maximum of nine months - to attract a “Lead Partner” who will subsidise this asset-defining and bring it to fruition for the British game.

Roger Draper, chief executive for more than two years, said that a lot of work had been done to simplify what he described as “a somewhat confused picture”. There is no confusion in the fact that Andy Murray apart, the British game does not possess a playing asset worth a bean of sponsorship investment. Anne Keothavong has reached the top 100 for the first time in her career but with so many ranking points to fall off during the rest of the summer, it is hardly likely she will stay there. Murray is the only treasure. And it glistened yesterday.

If his performance in the opening round of the French Open against Jonathan Eysseric was in the “somewhat confused” category, it was replaced against José Acasuso, of Argentina, yesterday with so much clarity of mind and audacious execution it took the breath away. Murray in this mood can slice anyone's game to pieces and Acasuso, the world No49, was ripe for dissection. At the end of his 6-4, 6-0, 6-4 victory, the British No1 curled himself into a ball of vein-popping, screaming delight.

Whether this was retribution for having missed the Davis Cup tie in Argentina when even Jamie, his brother, wondered what on earth was going on, or simply a man determined to show exactly what he can do on red clay, the Scot excelled.

And, he only messed up on two drop shots, which merits a tip of the hat. His cause was helped by breaking serve in the first game of the opening two sets but if he has played a better 21 minutes of tennis than the second set yesterday, it has slipped one's mind.

Murray said his performance was, in part, a response to criticism of his recent performances on clay. “I didn't play my best match the other day, but wasn't feeling great,” he said. “I still feel I'm getting questioned as to why I'm not doing better. I wanted to show I can beat the top clay-court players and he is one.”

Murray will now face Nicolas Almagro, of Spain, who has won more matches on clay, 32, than anyone in the world this year and it is challenges such as this upon which he thrives. It is not beyond his capacity to reach the fourth round if he maintains the level of composed aggression that was the feature of yesterday's onslaught. His serve was exceptional; he surrendered only five break points - two in the final game - all of which he saved.

The match was completed in half darkness for which there were compelling factors. When are tennis authorities going to do something about the rule-bending and blatant time wasting that runs like a sore through the sport? At the end of the first set in the match that preceded Murray on Court No3, Ioana Olaru, of Romania, having lost the first set to Stephanie Cohen-Aloro, of France, walked off for a break that lasted at least ten minutes. For what? An application of rouge? These are rest periods cloaked as injury time-outs and are becoming intolerable. That and the fact that Julien Benneteau, of France, let slip a two-set lead and then recovered to beat Vince Spadea, of the United States, in five meant Murray did not have much daylight to play with.

There were times when it was difficult to know which howled louder, the winds that buffeted Roland Garros, or Maria Sharapova. The Russian was promoted to No1 seed after the retirement of Justine Henin and on any other surface, such acclaim would sit well with her. Remarkably, the two top seeds both need this event to complete their grand-slam set, and more remarkable that it is only three years that the same situation prevailed, when Roger Federer and Lindsay Davenport were the respective No1s.

When Evgeniya Rodina, a 19-year-old Russian, failed to hold her serve in the opening set against Sharapova, it was difficult to imagine she would be dogging her famous compatriot two hours later. Rodina had three opportunities to lead 5-3 in the final set, only for the more noted Russian to pound down three first serves that could not be returned. On such fine margins are triumph and disaster measured.