Emotional Murray wins again in Washington

Extraordinary scenes unfolded in Washington DC as Andy Murray finally beat Marius Copil to progress to the quarterfinals of the Citi Open.

In a match lasting more than three hours and finishing after 3am local time, Murray completed a 6-7(5) 6-3 7-6(4) victory to win his third straight match in the US capital.

It was the latest finish of Murray’s stellar 13-year career.

The former world No.1 then sat in his court-side seat and sobbed uncontrollably into his towel for several minutes before finally leaving the court, signing autographs for the hardcore fans who stayed to see the match through to its thrilling conclusion.

Closing time!

In the latest #CitiOpen finish in history @andy_murray edges Marius Copil, 6-7(5) 6-3 7-6(4) to reach his 1st quarter-final in over a year.

It's AFTER 3 A.M. Take a bow, gentlemen! ???? pic.twitter.com/EHXXQx7FBB

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 3, 2018

Murray next faces Aussie young gun Alex de Minaur, who won two matches on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals at the rain-ravaged event.

That match is scheduled for the Friday night session, less than 24 hours after the Briton saw off Copil.

It is unclear how Murray will pull up after this latest epic, his third three-set victory in a row in Washington DC.

In the first round, Murray required two hours and 37 minutes to see off American Mackenzie McDonald, winning 7-5 in the third. Then came his two-hour, 32-minute grind over fellow Brit Kyle Edmund.

Murray has now spent eight hours and 11 minutes on court this week, in what is his first hard-court event since returning from a 12-month absence because of a hip injury.

Copil, the world No.93, presented a powerful challenge. Playing with brute force, the Romanian slammed 20 aces and hit serves reaching speeds of 230km/h. But he showed his versatility too, toying with his opponent in the first set thanks to a feathery drop shot followed by a winning volley off the reply.

Murray reached 5-0 in the first tiebreak only to surrender seven straight points and allow Copil to snatch the opening set.

The Brit recovered quickly, breaking serve immediately to go ahead 2-0 in the third set. He also broke for a 4-2 lead in the final set, only to drop serve in the very next game.

Yet Murray held firm when the next tiebreak unfolded.

Goodnight, @andy_murray ????#CitiOpen pic.twitter.com/DbaGeQIyo1

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 3, 2018