The Sports Lowdown For All Your News and OpinionsAndy Murray exited the tournament following a four set loss to Kevin Anderson, whilst Roger Federer, Richard Gasquet and Victoria Azarenka all progressed to the quarter-finals. However, there was further British heartache as Johanna Konta’s run came to an end with defeat to Petra Kvitova.
The eighth day of the tournament saw the rest of the fourth round matches completed, and Andy Murray faced the big serving Kevin Anderson for a spot in the quarter-finals. In the opening set, Murray pressed for the early break but Anderson held on, as the set would eventually reach a tie-break. In the tie-break, the tension increased as both players were producing brilliant tennis, but it was Anderson who prevailed, smacking a forehand winner to snatch the first set.
The South African maintained his blistering form as the second set got underway, and a slightly dispirited Murray was broken early to give Anderson the lead. The South African was simply too good as another crushed forehand winner established the double break advantage and even though Murray briefly rallied to retrieve one break back, the South African held his nerve to close out the second set. In the third set, both players exchanged breaks of serve as Anderson continued to frustrate Murray, and the set would be decided by a tie-break. This time, it was Murray who seized the initiative, and the Brit consolidated his lead impressively to keep the match alive.
The fourth set became a tight affair as both players continued to hold their service games, with Anderson ensuring Murray was unable to gain a foothold on his serve, so another tie-break was needed to decide the outcome of the set. However, it was the Brit who broke down first in the extended rallies, as the combination of Anderson’s powerful serve and Murray’s errors saw the South African dominate the tie-break, and Anderson completed a deserved 7-6 6-3 6-7 7-6 win to end Murray’s hopes of winning a third grand slam title.
Anderson will face Stan Wawrinka in the quarter-finals, as the reigning French Open champion defeated Donald Young in four sets. In addition, Roger Federer edged John Isner 7-6 7-6 7-5 to set up a meeting with Richard Gasquet, after the Frenchman fought back from a set down to beat Tomas Berdych 2-6 6-3 6-4 6-1.
On the women’s side, Simona Halep overcame Sabine Lisicki 6-7 7-5 6-2 and will play Victoria Azarenka in the quarter-finals, who advanced in straight sets. However, Britain’s Johanna Konta was unable to continue her incredible run, as she went down 7-5 6-3 to Petra Kvitova. The Czech will face Flavia Pennetta, after the Italian dispatched Samantha Stosur 6-4 6-4.
