Top seed Andy Murray has reached the quarter-finals of the Valencia Open after beating Leonardo Mayer 6-4 3-6 6-3.
Top seed into last eight with three-set victory
Andy Murray has reached the quarter-finals of the Valencia Open but only after receiving stiffer than expected resistance from opponent Leonardo Mayer.
The top seed and world number four gave an inconsistent performance against a player ranked 60 places below him in the rankings but eventually progressed with a 6-4 3-6 6-3 victory.
Playing his second match following a six-week injury lay-off, Murray struggled to get into his rhythm from the start.
Meanwhile, Argentina's Mayer appeared confident and served well until the ninth game - the Scot breaking at the first opportunity before serving out to take the set.
Mayer's confidence was again evident in the second set and he went 4-0 ahead as Murray's concentration lapsed.
After going even further behind, Murray dug deep to win three games on the trot but Mayer nevertheless served out at the second attempt to draw level.
The deciding set was initially a cagey affair but Murray struck in the sixth game by pressuring his opponent's serve and converted his second break-point when a feisty return induced a long forehand from Mayer.
The underdog still provided resistance, though, with a cross-court forehand taking him to 0-30 as Murray served for the match - Mayer also winning the first two match-points against him.
However, Murray forced a forehand error to set up his third opportunity - which he took with an ace.
He next plays Spain's Albert Montanes - who was given a valuable day's rest when his opponent, eighth seed David Ferrer, withdrew with an ankle injury.
Davydenko through
Earlier, Nikolay Davydenko recorded a straight-sets victory over Juan Monaco in the second round.
The second seed needed one hour and 42 minutes to see off the Argentinian 6-3 7-5, despite serving four double faults in the second set
Next up for the Russian - who is bidding to win his fifth ATP Tour title of the season - is a quarter-final showdown with Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
Mikhail Youzhny is also through to the last eight after triumphing 6-2 2-6 6-1 in a topsy-turvy encounter with Uruguayan Pablo Cuevas.
The world number 23 bounced back from losing the second set to sweep through the third, booking a clash with fifth-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon.
ATP World Tour Finals hopeful Tommy Robredo also kept his slim hopes of qualifying for the season finale alive with a 4-6 6-3 6-4 victory over Feliciano Lopez.
