Indian Wells Oct. 13 (BUS): Alexander Zverev scored his first career win over Andy Murray on Tuesday with a 6-4 7-6(4) victory that took him to the fourth round at Indian Wells.
Former world number one Murray, who has outpaced the German in the previous two matches, jumped to a 3-0 lead and seemed to bother the 24-year-old by standing well on the court on his second re-serve.
But third seed Zverev regrouped to win six of the next seven matches and take the first set when Murray’s falling shot failed to cross the net, Reuters reported.
Just as in the first set, Murray got an early break in the second, but Zverev is back in the fight again despite needing a long break to tie a pair of shoes after cutting his shoelace on his first pair.
Zverev played the match on his racket serving 6-5 but missed a ball over his head, a shot that spoiled him all day, sending the set into the tiebreak.
Murray’s uneven play continued into the tiebreak and after a furious dash of volleys into the net sent the last ball away from match point, the Scotsman batted into the field in frustration.
Zverev told reporters after the match that he was very relieved.
“I am happy with how everything is going,” he added. “I thought it was a very interesting match. It was of a high standard, so I am happy with the success.”
Zverev has so far recorded wins against Grand Slam champion Murray, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal, who were known as the “Big Four” in men’s tennis until their injuries affected Murray.
“It’s the best I’ve felt physically in a while, but I’m kind of fighting at my game a little bit,” Murray said.
“Consistency isn’t there and decision making isn’t great at the important moments.”
In the next round, Zverev will meet either Frenchman Gael Monfils or South African Kevin Anderson.