Andy Murray battled past Romanian qualifier Marius Copil 6-3 6-7(7) 6-4 at the European Open in Antwerp on Friday to reach his first singles semifinal in two years.
The Briton, back on the ATP Tour after a career-saving hip resurfacing operation in January, was on course for a straight-sets victory but Copil was determined to test his opponent’s resolve and clawed his way back to force a third set.
Murray came through with flying colours, converting five out of 14 break points and winning 87 per cent of points on his first serve in the match that lasted two hours and 35 minutes to reach his first singles semifinal since the French Open in 2017.
Fire Up! ????@andy_murray reaches his first ATP semi-final since the 2017 French Open after defeating Copil 6-3 6-7 6-4 at @EuroTennisOpen! pic.twitter.com/nOgMZJz0Z0
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) October 18, 2019
Up next for the 32-year-old is Frenchman Ugo Humbert, who overcame fifth seed Guido Pella in three sets.
Joining Murray in the last four was Swiss Stan Wawrinka, who wasted a match point in the second set before outlasting Gilles Simon 6-3 6-7(6) 6-2 to reach his first semifinal since February.
Next he will play Italian Jannik Sinner in a rematch of their US Open first-round meeting earlier this year after the talented 18-year-old defeated American Frances Tiafoe 6-4 3-6 6-3.
SPOTLIGHT: Jannik Sinner’s meteoric rise
With his victory over Tiafoe, Sinner is expected to make his top-100 debut.
18-year-old Jannik Sinner beats Frances Tiafoe at @EuroTennisOpen to become youngest @ATPTour semi-finalist since @Borna_Coric, 17, at 2014 Basel.
If Sinner wins #EuropeanOpen SF on Saturday, he will become youngest #ATP finalist since @KeiNishikori, 18, at 2008 @DelrayBeachOpen
— ATP Media Info (@ATPMediaInfo) October 18, 2019
After cruising through the first set, three-times Grand Slam champion Murray raced ahead 3-1 in the second before suffering a lapse in concentration while serving for the match at 5-3.
A double fault by the Briton handed Copil the break and the Romanian took full advantage to drag the contest into a decider after edging the second set in a tiebreak.
The pair were locked at 4-4 in the final set before Murray switched gears to close out the victory in style, finishing it off with his ninth ace.
“I haven’t played loads of matches the past few years, so when you get to the end of the match, it’s always difficult to serve it out,” Murray said in a courtside interview.
“I played a bad game at 5-3 in the second set and after that I think he gained a lot of confidence. He served extremely well.
“He was being a lot more aggressive at the end of the second set and in the third, but thankfully I managed to get the break right at the end. It was a tough one to get through.”
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