The skies were grey but the air around the Prince of Perversity, Andy Murray, was oddly blue for much of a rain-split win in straight sets over John Isner to reach the quarter-finals of the French Open for a record sixth time.
Advertisement
The French wunderkind who never panned out as an adult bloomed late – specifically on Sunday at Roland Garros – advancing to his first French Open quarterfinals in 13 tries after a 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 upset over No. 5 seed Kei Nishikori.
Nishikori is trying to make the last-eight in Paris for the second successive year while Gasquet, the last French player remaining in either the men’s or women’s singles, has yet to reach the quarter-finals.
Murray got a set point on the Isner serve in game 10 and won a volley contest with the 2.08m American at the net to seal a two-set advantage.
Isner, on the other hand has had a similarly tough run, defeating Australian John Millman 6-7, 7-6, 7-6, 7-5 in the first round with three of the four sets ending in tie-breakers.
The loss was all the more painful because the Shimane native world No. 6 could not have asked for a better start, getting an early break over his 29-year-old opponent to take a 4-2 first set lead.
A tight first set would go all the way to the tie-break, with Murray looking as shaky as he had done in the earlier rounds against Mathias Bourgue and Radek Stepanek.
Wawrinka, the third seed, saw off Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (7/9), 6-3, 6-2 for his 11th straight win in the year’s second Grand Slam.
“I had lost four times in a row here so I am very happy”, said the shock victor who had also won just four matches in his entire career at the majors before coming to Paris. I don’t understand why some of the players don’t want to play.
Andy Murray will bid to extend his hot streak against home players in Grand Slams on Tuesday against a Frenchman burdened by the hopes of a nation.
The Scot lit up gloomy Roland-Garros after the match was hit by yet another Parisian rain delay shortly after a titanic 66-minute first set which Murray won on the tiebreak. – Isner discussing Murray’s ability to return serve.
Isner’s interest was piqued in the next game as he threatened to break back and prolong the match, but Murray held firm to move to within a game of the quarter-finals. What’s her plan? “Maybe I will do a little shopping before I leave”, she said, smiling. I was playing far from the baseline and very slow.
“I changed that day because it was really hot”, said Murray.
And Murray’s on-court language was certainly more colourful than the grey sky.
Unseeded American Shelby Rogers faces Romanian 25th seed Irina-Camelia Begu.
Adding to the pressure on Gasquet’s, at times, frail shoulders is the fact that no French man has won the singles title in Paris since Yannick Noah in 1983 – just the second French victor since World War II.
“I feel fine now. And of course my coach (Sergi Bruguera) talk to me very loud, and that’s why I did a bad game coming back”, said Gasquet who had lost to Nishikori twice on clay this month in Madrid and Rome.
Advertisement
On court Monday in the fourth round: No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs.
