Friday 29 January 2016

Murray Makes it Past Milos

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Andy Murray reached his fifth Australian Open final after an epic five-set battle with 13th seed Milos Raonic.

Briton Murray was broken in the first game and his 25-year-old Canadian opponent went on to take the first and third sets.

But the 28-year-old Scotsman prevailed 4-6 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-2 in a gruelling four-hour contest.

Murray will now meet reigning champion Novak Djokovic in Sunday's final.

"It was tough in that third set. In the tie-break he didn't miss a single serve and it is frustrating when you don't get a say in the points," said Murray.

"Over the match, I got a better read on his serve and that was crucial."

The result means Murray and older sibling Jamie have become the first brothers in the Open era to reach the finals in both the men's singles and men's doubles events at a Grand Slam.

Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares will play Daniel Nestor and Radek Stepanek in the doubles final on Saturday.

Fellow Scot Gordon Reid is also on course for an Australian Open double after reaching the final of the men's wheelchair in both the singles and doubles.

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash: "This match won't take an awful lot out of Murray - the rallies weren't that long. He was moving very well at the end and was moving confidently. He knows where he failed last year and knows he must keep the pressure up against Djokovic and can't afford any lapses.

"Last year he was at himself the whole time. He shouldn't have been but he couldn't stop himself and for his sake I'm hoping he has learnt the lessons from that."

BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller: "Maybe last year Murray didn't believe he could beat Djokovic, but now he's more and more confident in his abilities and Djokovic has been a bit off-key at times, making 100 errors against Gilles Simon."


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