Murray Fights Hard To Overcome Zverev Into Doha Open Quarterfinals

Andy Murray produced a gutsy performance to reach the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open after defeating Alexander Zverev in a gruelling match that lasted over three hours on Wednesday.

Murray battled to a 7-6 (7/5), 2-6, 7-5 victory, saving two match points in the third set to seal the win.

In his on-court interview after the match, Murray thanked the crowd for their support, stating that it made a big difference to the players when they received a lot of energy and a great atmosphere from the crowd.

"I obviously enjoyed playing in that atmosphere tonight," he said.

The former World No 1 will now face French qualifier Alexandre Muller, who caused an upset by defeating Dutch eighth seed Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 6-4.

Murray and Muller have never met before but the British player acknowledged that Muller has had a good week, coming through the qualifying rounds and winning four matches in the process.

Murray's coach will watch video footage to gain familiarity with Muller's game but Murray sees the quarterfinal as an opportunity for him to progress further in the tournament.

Meanwhile, top-seeded Andrey Rublev, who won the Doha title in 2020, had to fight back from 2-5 down in the third set to edge out Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (8/6).

Griekspoor had three match points on his serve in the ninth game of the third set, but Rublev managed to save them and win in one hour and 54 minutes.

Rublev will face Jiri Lehecka, a 21-year-old Czech, in the quarterfinals.

Canadian second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime also had a tough time, struggling against Jason Kubler's serve in the first set before recovering to overcome the Australian 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 after two hours and 16 minutes.

Kubler had won the only previous meeting between the two players in Newport last year.