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French Open: Andy Murray sets up Juan Martin del Potro clash after Round 2 win
Andy Murray beat Slovakia’s Martin Klizan 6-7 (3/7), 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/3) in the second round of 2017 French Open. He’ll now face Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro for a place in the last 16.
World number one Andy Murray reached the French Open third round on Thursday with a bruising 6-7 (3/7), 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/3) win over Martin Klizan of Slovakia.
Murray will face Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro for a place in the last 16.
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“I expected a tough match. Martin goes for his shots, he can hit winners with that forehand from anywhere on the court,” said 2016 runner-up Murray.
“I tried to play a solid match, I hit deeper the longer the match went on and tried to dictate the points.”
Murray faced Del Potro in two epic encounters last year.
He beat the Argentine in a marathon Olympic final before Del Potro, now 30 in the world, gained his revenge with a come-from-behind win in five sets in the Davis Cup semi-final.
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“It will be very tough. Juan Martin is playing a lot better than his ranking,” said Murray.
“He’s come back from injury and had some tough draws this year. It should be a great atmosphere.”
Klizan smashed 57 winners on Thursday but 64 unforced errors as his all-or-nothing game proved in vain.
Del Potro, meanwhile, moved into the third round after his opponent Nicolas Almagro had to retire in the third set.
The Argentine was seen consoling his Spanish opponent after the premature end to the match.
