Decisive final set catapults Murray into quarter final
BRITAIN’S Andy Murray defeated Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber in three sets to reach the last 16 of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells last night.
Fourth seed Murray crushed Kohlschreiber in the deciding set to post a 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 success and set up a quarter-final withFrance’s world No38 Adrian Mannarino.
Victory saw Murray reach 495 career wins, with the Scot now just one short of Tim Henman’s Open-era record for a British man, confirming that a change of tactic helped him regain the initiative in the third set.
“I started trying to play a little further up the court,” said Murray.
“I felt like in the first set I dictated a lot of the rallies. In the middle of the second set I had an opportunity with a break point and played a slightly tentative point. He gained a bit of confidence from that.”
World No4 Murray has not ventured further than the quarter-final stage in the California tournament since 2009 and remains wary about the credentials possessed by his last-eight tie against Mannarino.
“He’s improved a lot over the last 18 months or so,” added Murray. “He’s had a couple of good wins here. He’s talented, lefty, a Frenchman. Most of the French players have a bit of flair on court.
“I’ll have to play well to beat him because he’s got a bit of confidence right now.”