ANDY Murray has hit on an ace solution for his sore paw.
Q: Namely? A: Dilute acetic acid - vinegar, to you. You might think that in the world of elite tennis, players would be looking for some new hi-tech solution for their ailments, but when the young Scot complained of a painful playing hand and recurring blisters, after beating Tim Henman twice in a week, he was advised to soak it in vinegar.
Q: By his granny? A: No, his new coach, Brad Gilbert.
Q: Why? A: It's good for a lot more than sprinkling on chips. Vinegar is an ageold remedy with great healing properties. Remember Jill's brother, the ill-starred Jack, who resorted to "vinegar and brown paper" to treat his head wound in the nursery rhyme? Combined with surgical spirit, it is often used for hardening the skin on hands and feet.
Q: Did the acerbic remedy hit the spot? A: Apparently so. Murray appeared to have no problems with his playing hand when he used it to beat world No 1 Roger Federer in Cincinnati on Wednesday.
Q: What else is vinegar good for? A: Just about everything, according to vinegar aficionado Margaret Briggs (see her book Vinegar 1001 Practical Uses), including eliminating cat litter tray odours, removing corns and cleaning the loo.
Q: How did mankind live without it? A: Mankind hasn't lived without it, at least not for the past 10,000 years. People started finding uses for vinegar as soon as the first undistilled alcoholic drinks started to go off. Ancient civilisations as far back as the Sumerians used it as a condiment, preservative, medicine, antibiotic and detergent.
Q: And to harden the skin on their sword-wielding hands? A: Indubitably.
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