Tuesday 6 June 2017 08:30, UK
Andy Murray advanced into the fourth round of the French Open after seeing off the challenge of Juan Martin del Potro in straight sets on Saturday.
The world No 1 battled back to win a marathon first set lasting one hour and 25 minutes before triumphing 7-6 (8) 7-5 6-0 on Philippe Chatrier.
He will next face Karen Khachanov for a place in the quarter-finals after the Russian beat 21st seed John Isner in four sets.
Murray and Del Potro contested a couple of epic matches in 2016, with the Brit winning in four sets in the Olympic final in Brazil and the Argentine winning over five hours in the Davis Cup semi-finals.
And it looked like another lengthy encounter could be on the cards during an absorbing first set.
With Del Potro having admitted to suffering a groin injury in the last round, Murray was soon testing his court coverage out, hitting a drop shot with the first point of the match.
But it was Del Potro who made the first breakthrough, with his powerful forehand helping him into a 3-1 lead.
He maintained the advantage throughout a high-quality set, only to be broken at 5-4 after failing to convert a set point. The tie-breaker swung back and forth, with both players missing opportunities to close it out. Del Potro had four set points in total and double-faulted at 7-6 up in the tie-breaker.
Murray eventually took it 10-8 after one hour and 25 minutes, with Del Potro then spending much of the changeover slumped over the net.
A break in the first game of the second set enhanced Murray's advantage, but Del Potro stayed in touch as the world No 1 failed to convert with two break points in the third game.
Del Potro's level improved as the set wore on and he broke back for 5-5, only for Murray to reply instantly and then serve out for a two-set lead.
From then on there only looked to be one winner as Murray powered clear, raising his level as Del Potro struggled to keep up.
For those on the move, we will have the French Open from Roland Garros covered via our website skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad, or follow our Twitter account @SkySportsTennis to join in the conversation.
