Andy Murray beats Feliciano Lopez to reach Barcelona Open quarter-final
Thursday 27 April 2017 23:43, UK
Andy Murray returned to winning ways on clay with a 6-4 6-4 third-round victory over Feliciano Lopez at the Barcelona Open.
The world No 1 was back in action for the first time since his surprise third-round exit at the Monte Carlo Masters to Albert Ramos-Vinolas and Lopez gave him just the test he needed.
Murray had been handed a second-round walkover over Bernard Tomic had withdrawn on Wednesday and he proved too strong for Lopez in just under two hours.
Lopez forced plenty of chances on the Scot's serve but Murray held his nerve and was broken only once on his way to victory which sets up a quarter-final showdown with Ramos-Vinolas.
Ramos-Vinolas, the world No 19, defeated fellow Spaniard Bautista Agut, in three sets 6-2 3-6 6-4.
Murray had won all 10 previous meetings between the pair, but the early stages showed Lopez would provide a stern test.
The 35-year-old forced break points in each of Murray's opening service game while suffering little trouble on his own until the latter stages of the opening set.
Murray thought he had the crucial break as he led 5-3 but up 40-15, he wasted five set points as Lopez somehow found a breakthrough of his own to draw back within one game.
But Murray rallied again, conjuring some of his best tennis to force a second consecutive break and seal the set in 59 minutes.
The second set followed a similar pattern to the first, albeit with little in the way of break-point opportunities until Murray began to find his swagger and he struck with the only break in the final game of the match to seal his victory.
World No 9 Dominic Thiem remains on course to be Murray's semi-final opponent.
Having vanquished British No 2 Kyle Edmund in the second round, the Austrian dispatched Dan Evans 7-6 6-2 to advance to his last-eight meeting with lucky loser Yuichi Sugita, who stunned seventh seed Pablo Carreno Busta in straight sets.
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