Wawrinka Stuns Murray, Youzhny Advances

© Getty ImagesStanislas Wawrinka clipped 58 winners, including 13 aces, to upset Andy Murray.

Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka effected the biggest upset of the US Open to date when he rallied from a set down to oust fourth seed Andy Murray 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-3 on Sunday. He will play American Sam Querrey for a place in the quarter-finals.

Wawrinka equaled his best Grand Slam performance by reaching the fourth round at Flushing Meadows for the third time in four years. An aggressive Wawrinka outgunned Murray with 58 winners, with his explosive single-handed backhand inflicting a lot of the damage.

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“The serve was one of the keys of the match, for sure," Wawrinka said. "I served pretty well.  Beginning of the second set was not really good, but then I think that helped me a lot to get some free points.  It's always important against that kind of player.

“I think all my game was pretty good.  One of my best matches, for sure.  I was very aggressive.  I was doing everything really good.  So I'm very happy."

Murray, who would have taken a two-sets-to-love lead had he won the second-set tie-break, had a simple assessment of the result. "I lost the match to a better player today. That's it."

Pressed for a deeper explanation, Murray added: "The first two sets were very close, and the third and fourth sets he was serving better than me probably.

"It's frustrating, regardless whether you're playing well or not, to lose in a slam. I would have liked to have done better here, but I didn't. It's been a long, long trip for me. Been away a long time.  I look forward to getting home, resting and thinking about what I'm going to need to do to improve. But this summer overall, I played some great tennis again. I'm just disappointed I didn't play my greatest tennis here."

Russian Mikhail Youzhny advanced to the fourth round of the US Open for the first time since his run to the semi-finals in 2006 when he withstood 33 aces from American John Isner to win their night match on Arthur Ashe Stadium. Isner, who came into the tournament under an injury cloud after injuring his ankle in Cincinnati, made 61 unforced errors.

Youzhny took the crowd out of the match early by breaking Isner in the first games of the first and second sets. When he claimed a double break to go ahead 4-1 in the second, the match had seemingly slipped from Isner's control. But the 6' 9" Georgia native clawed his way back to force a tie-break, which he won on his fourth set point.

But Youzhny won the pivotal third-set tie-break and then finished strong, wrapping up the match 6-4, 6-7(7), 7-6(5), 6-4 in 3 hrs., 18 mins.

Youzhny said that he was pleased with how he regained composure after letting slip the second set. "After a tough situation, when I lost the second set after being two break ups, I came back to court and start to play again," he said.

Isner said: "I just didn't have the pop I needed on my shots. I wasn't able to get to the balls like I thought I should have... I was a little bit fatigued.  But with that being said, you know, I gave myself every chance to compete in this tournament, 'cause two weeks ago it didn't look good at all."

"I was playing from behind pretty much a lot of that match. I got down an early break in the second, got down another break in the second. I just started off sloppy. That was just horrible on my part. Just came out and missed literally four easy balls. Put me in a hole right from the get go. It takes so much energy to try to come back from a hole like that."