“It was a terrible tragedy in London and also in Manchester only a few weeks ago,” he said.

“Paris has had some problems in the last few years and I’m sure everyone will join me in sharing the fact that our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by this.

“It is something which has affected large parts of Europe and all over the world. I appreciate everyone still coming out to support us and I’m grateful I can perform in front of you.”

Murray – beaten finalist last year – continued where he left off against Juan Martin del Potro on Saturday to beat the unseeded Russian with barely a scare.

The only British man to win the French Open is Fred Perry, in 1935.

Murray tames Khachanov power-game

Murray followed up his impressive third-round win over Juan Martin del Potro with another display that suggests he is a real contender in Paris.

His struggles with form and fitness leading into Roland Garros had left him sticking to the ‘one game at a time’ mantra, with good reason.

However, the hugely powerful Khachanov, ranked 53rd, was dismissed by another Murray performance built around his trademark defensive skills allied with some solid serving.

The gap in experience was huge, with Murray trying to reach his 29th Grand Slam quarter-final and 21-year-old Khachanov his first.

It was quickly apparent that Khachanov’s power would take some getting used to, as the Russian drew gasps from the crowd for both forehands and backhands.

Murray played the percentages beautifully, however, setting up the decisive break point of the opening set with a wonderful return and making just one unforced error in the entire set.

Khachanov would fall behind early in the second after a double-fault, an issue that dogged him throughout the match along with a poor first-serve percentage.

The first crack in the Murray game appeared just after the hour mark as two loose shots handed the break straight back, but another poor Khachanov service game made it three breaks in a row.

Murray would not relinquish this chance, easing through to a two-set lead and moving 2-0 up in the third.

There was a brief alarm when his first-serve deserted him and he was pegged back to 4-4, but again Murray hit straight back with his fifth break of the match and closed it out on serve.

‘I’ve come a long way in 10 days’

Among the many impressive statistics to come out of Murray’s fourth match of the week, the fact that he won 75% of points on his second serve will be of particular satisfaction.

Sometimes a weakness of his game, the Briton defended it superbly whenever Khachanov attacked off the return.

A meagre total of 14 unforced errors offered the Russian little as Murray took another step back towards his best

“I think today was probably the best I have played overall. It was difficult conditions. It was pretty windy out there. Wasn’t easy,” said Murray.

“But each match, I feel like I played better. I have hit the ball cleaner and started to see the right shots at the right moments.

“Yeah, I’ve come a long way the last 10 days or so.”

‘Murray in the best shape he could have hoped for’

Analysis from BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller at Roland Garros

Murray served very well in an extremely efficient win on a breezy Paris afternoon – losing only seven points on second serve in the entire match.

Khachanov did not seem at all over-awed by the occasion, and continued to hit with freedom, but Murray’s guile neutralised his power sufficiently.

The world number one is in the best shape he could have hoped for ahead of the quarter-finals.

Two consecutive straight-sets wins have conserved energy and he has as good a chance of anyone of making the final from his half of the draw.