Across on Margaret Court Arena, Frenchmen Gael Monfils and Nicholas Mahut went toe-to-toe with the explosive Monfils packing too much power for his fellow countryman to win 7-5, 6-4, 6-1.
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“He’s been fantastic for tennis, for Australian tennis”.
When Murray completed victory, Sears was undergoing tests with a cardiologist but Jamie Murray told Press Association Sport the 58-year-old was “conscious, talking and sitting up”. And the tributes kept streaming in.
Hewitt, who played his first Australian Open in 1997, never achieved his ambition of winning the national championship.
Hewitt contested every, single point.
Even before he retired as a player, he was hired as Australia’s Davis Cup coach for 2016.
He is still in the doubles draw with Australian partner Sam Groth.
Djokovic is bidding to win a sixth title this year in Melbourne and he improved his chances on Friday by beating Italy’s Andreas Seppi 6-1 7-5 7-6 (8/6) to reach the fourth round. No Australian man has won the title since 1976.
Stepanek took a 4-2 head-to-head edge into the match, although Wawrinka has now won their last three matches. In the latter instance, Murray’s pal, Novak Djokovic, on Wednesday refuted claims he deliberately lost a match at the Paris Masters in 2007.
Sousa is good friends with Rafael Nadal and spent a week in Majorca training with the Spaniard during the off-season. “He knows how to win”.
Verdasco double-faulted twice in a row in the tiebreaker to put Sela within two points of victory, then netted a backhand to end the match.
The two players, Richard Gabb and Scott Clayton, were confronted at a tournament in Turkey two years ago by Russian player Andrey Kumantsov.
“I felt like this was the ideal place to finish”, Hewitt said Thursday, sharing the court with his three children. He had 35 winners and committed only 10 unforced errors.
Roger Federer has heard enough speculation about match-fixing in tennis.
The four-time Australian Open finalist advanced to the third round for the eighth time.
Robert will bid to become the first qualifier through to the round of 16 at Melbourne Park since Milos Raonic in 2011. I was really shaking, because the sound of the lady falling was really loud. “It keeps me focused”.
Azarenka, like Murray a two-time grand slam victor, pummeled Danka Kovinic 6-1 6-2, a round after thrashing Alison van Uytvanck 6-0 6-0.
Murray drilled down with two more service breaks in the third set to wrap up a convincing win, with Groth finishing in pain from an apparent twisted right ankle as he made a net approach in the final game.
Azarenka is seeded 14th but on form is shaping as Serena Williams’ biggest challenger at Melbourne Park. Muguruza is yet to drop a set in the tournament and next faces world No48 Barbora Strycova.
American John Isner also was a straight-sets victor Thursday.
No. 15 Madison Keys beat Yaroslava Shvedova 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-3.
The first set between the Serbian and her opponent Anastasija Sevastova was held up for 26 minutes as the woman was treated by medical staff in the stands of the showcourt.
“The patron was stretchered to the first aid post for observation and further treatment”, the officials said, without commenting on her condition.
Misty rain has briefly delayed the start of play on outdoor courts at the Australian Open. In 2008, he played Marcos Baghdatis in a third-round match that started before midnight and finished at 4:34 a.m. There was still a big crowd in Rod Laver Arena when he won it.
When Murray appears most exasperated he often produces his most inspired tennis and that was the case in the third set, as he used his superior touch, craft and speed to outmanoeuvre Sousa.
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Groth, ranked 67th in the world, lives in Melbourne and was born in nearby Narrandera but the local favourite gave Murray a timely confidence boost before the match, when he revealed Australia’s most famous court would be a new experience for him.
