There are roller coaster matches, and then there is the clash between mikael ymer Y Andy Murray on Monday.
After many twists and turns, the Swede finally defeated the former World No. 1 7-6(8), 4-6, 6-1 to reach the second round of the open city. It was Ymer’s first match on a hard court since February.
“I’m excited,” Ymer said in his on-court interview. “It was the first day [of the U.S. swing]So obviously there’s a lot to be done, but it’s a very good start to American swing.”
Both men showed physical problems at different points, but the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals the student made it through the third set to triumph after two hours and 50 minutes.
After saving four set points in the first set and taking a 3-1 lead in the second, Ymer was in complete control. Murray was left stretching his legs on several occasions and lamenting the missed opportunities. On each of his four set points in the first set, one at 6-5 and three more in the tie break, he was in a winnable position at the point but was unable to convert.
“Obviously it was disappointing. I thought there was good tennis in the first set. After that, we both had physical problems. The level of tennis was not very good,” said Murray. “Obviously I had chances in the first set to close that out. I had set point at 6-5, then… three in the tieb-reak, and I didn’t get it.”
Suddenly, midway through the second set, Ymer began to falter and showed signs of his own physical discomfort, giving Murray a burst of energy. The Scot won five of the last six games of the second set to capture the momentum.
However, after the set break, the 46-time Tour champion hit an unforced forehand error to give up a break and was never able to get back into the match. Ymer looked totally refreshed and, despite a setback when he was leading 4-0, he wrapped up his victory to set up a clash against the 15th seed. aslan karatsev.
“I think it looked like maybe he was cramping a little bit in the second set, but he recovered absolutely well after the break at the end of the set. [second] establish. He went to change and freshen up a bit, and he recovered well for the third, whereas I really didn’t. Yeah, just frustrating,” Murray said. “Actually at Newport I had cramps right at the end of one of my games there. Really hot and humid. I usually quite enjoy playing in those conditions.
“I struggled a little bit in the last two tournaments with that. I need to take a look at that with my team and maybe see why that is, make some changes.”
While Murray was unable to advance, the British kyle edmund made. The 27-year-old earned his first ATP Tour win in 29 months when he defeated the Japanese qualifier. Yosuke Watanuki 6-4, 7-6(8).
Three surgeries on his left knee kept Edmund out for 21 months. He will now play as a civilian Daniel Evans for a third-round spot in Washington.
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“It’s very rewarding. During the long periods when I was away, not picking up a racket for five months, it was these events that I envisioned being here,” said Edmund. “It’s something you miss, feeling the buzz, listening to the crowd, playing under pressure.
“I did not find it easy today. He is a very complicated and very energetic player, but I told myself that I had worked too hard not to [give my all]. I stuck it out and got my reward at the end.”
American Denis Kudlawho grew up training in nearby College Park, Maryland, outperformed his compatriot Michael Mmohone qualifier, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. jj wolf it was another American who moved on, winning 6-2, 6-3 against the Japanese qualifier daniel taro.