Murray Survives Scare; Nadal Untroubled

© Getty ImagesAndy Murray reached the US Open final in 2008.

World No. 4 Andy Murray survived a scare in the second round of the US Open on Friday. For the sixth time in his career, the Scot was forced to rally from two sets down to defeat in-form Dutchman Robin Haase 6-7(5), 2-6, 6-2, 6-0, 6-4.

Murray's victory ensured he became the third player to qualify for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London.

After going down two sets against recent Kitzbuhel champion Haase, Murray looked to have taken control of the match as he reeled off 13 straight games from 3-2 in the third set to establish a 4-0 lead in the fifth set. However, the Briton squandered his lead as Haase hit back to level at 4-4. World No. 41 Haase could not maintain his second wind, though, and Murray regained his lead in the ninth game.

Still the drama was not over. After saving a match point, Haase then had the chance to draw level in the 10th game with a break point, but failed to convert. Murray thought he had won when a Haase forehand was called wide on his second match point, but Hawkeye adjudged that the ball had clipped the line. Murray finally got over the line on his third opportunity after three hours and 23 minutes when Haase hit his service return long.

"I was moving really badly first couple of sets and that meant I was making a lot of mistakes that I don’t normally make," explained Murray. "Once I forced myself to get to as many balls as possible and hustle a few points, I got the break in the third set and started playing and moving better.

"I felt at my calmest in the fifth set, even when he started coming back. I wasn’t panicking, I wasn’t getting frustrated; I just stayed focussed and managed to turn it round. I just stayed a little bit tougher than him and got the win."

The 24-year-old Murray improved his winning streak to seven matches, having won his 18th ATP World Tour title in Cincinnati (d. Djokovic) two weeks ago. The Dunblane native has produced his best performances in the Grand Slams this season, finishing runner-up at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic) and reaching the semi-finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

The man he lost to in the last four at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, Rafael Nadal, enjoyed much smoother progress through to the third round in New York. The Spaniard had been leading Nicolas Mahut 6-2, 6-2 when the Frenchman was forced to retire with a stomach strain.

"I'm sorry for Mahut, he said he felt pain when he was serving," said Nadal. "It's not nice to win like this, but that's sport sometimes. I think I did a few things much better than in the first match, I improved for sure. I think I played a good match against not an easy opponent. I tried to play my strategy and have control of the points with my forehand and tried to play a little bit more aggressive when I had the chance. I did what I really wanted to improve from the first match."

Defending champion Nadal became the seventh man in history to complete the career Grand Slam when he defeated Novak Djokovic in the 2010 final at Flushing Meadows. The left-hander is bidding to win his 11th major title and his second of the season after triumphing at Roland Garros (d. Federer); he was also runner-up at Wimbledon (l. to Djokovic).

Nadal came into came into New York with a slight question mark over his form after losing his opening match in Montreal (l. to Dodig) and falling in the quarter-finals in Cincinnati (l. to Fish). After a tricky first-round match against Andrey Golubev, Nadal looked much more assured against Mahut as he committed just five unforced errors and broke serve four times. He goes on to face Argentine David Nalbandian. The 2003 US Open semi-finalist notched the 350th win of his career as he ousted Croatian No. 30 seed Ivan Ljubicic 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 in two hours and 24 minutes.

Murray meanwhile will next face Spanish No. 25 seed Feliciano Lopez, who overcame Canadian Vasek Pospisil  5-7, 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(5). Murray takes a commanding 5-0 career lead into the clash, having most recently defeated the left-hander in straight sets in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.   

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