US Open 2016: Andy Murray sweeps past Grigor Dimitrov to reach last eight

Andy Murray, the second seed, won 6-1 6-2 6-2

BRITAIN’S Andy Murray dropped only five games as he thrashed Bulgarian 22nd seed Grigor Dimitrov to reach the quarter-finals at the US Open.

 

Murray, the second seed, won 6-1 6-2 6-2 and now faces Japanese sixth seed Kei Nishikori in the last eight.

The Scot, 29, was below his best against Paolo Lorenzi in the previous round but was superb against Dimitrov.

Juan Martin del Potro and Stan Wawrinka will meet in the other quarter-final in Murray’s half of the draw.

Swiss third seed Wawrinka saw off Ukraine’s Illya Marchenko 6-4 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3, while Argentina’s Del Potro, champion in 2009, led Dominic Thiem 6-3 3-2 when the Austrian retired with a knee injury.

Nishikori was impressive in a 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win over Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic.

In the men’s doubles, Jamie Murray and Brazil’s Bruno Soares beat Brian Baker and Marcus Daniell 6-3 7-6 (9-7) to reach the last eight.

Fired-up Murray lays down a marker

Dimitrov had won their only meeting this year in Miami, but he troubled Murray for barely a handful of points.

“I played extremely well,” said Murray. “Tactically I played a good match, made very few unforced errors and made it tough for Grigor.”

With serves regularly nudging the 140mph mark backed up by thunderous groundstrokes, Murray surged into a 6-1 3-0 lead.

Even when Dimitrov finally stopped the rot with a service break, he returned the advantage immediately with a double fault.

There was no respite for Dimitrov in the third set, which began with Murray winning another gruelling rally on his way to an early break and then saving two break points with more huge serving.

Despite his total dominance, Murray remained fired up, fizzing a spectacular running cross-court forehand winner past Dimitrov to break for a seventh time.

With just one game required for victory, Murray still found time to argue with umpire Carlos Ramos at the changeover about spectators moving between points.

But nothing was going to distract the Scot, who, after a brief rain delay, came out to complete the demolition job in just over two hours.

“Once I got up in the score and wasn’t giving him any free points, I could sense it was getting tough for him,” said Murray. “I just wanted to keep my foot on the gas.”

Murray’s first-serve percentage was an underwhelming 53% against Dimitrov but the pace on show was a notable step up for the Wimbledon champion.

His fastest serve was 141mph, which appears to be his quickest ever.

“I only did it once,” said the double Olympic champion. “I think it was luck. So I’m not expecting to do it again.”

Dimitrov said: “Andy is the best player right now out there. I ran out of fuel, I think, physically and mentally.”

Analysis

BBC 5 live tennis correspondent Russell Fuller:

This was a regal performance by Murray, who only allowed Dimitrov to hold serve four times in the entire match. Crisp, powerful ground strokes rarely missed and invariably landed deep in the court.

On the few occasions Murray found himself in trouble on serve, he usually dug out a first serve for the occasion, including one clocked at 141 miles per hour.

Twenty-four hours after Novak Djokovic’s eye-catching performance against Kyle Edmund, this was a reminder that Murray is the one who has been playing the best tennis over the past three months. BBC

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