With Federer's shocking early exit still fresh in mind, the crowd took the stands for another memorable session of tennis. This time, it was Andy Murray's turn. The Scot came close to being eliminated, but, in the end, the world number one did manage to eek out a win in front of the many fans watching in Dubai.
Murray was on the verge of defeat
The top-seeded player in Dubai, Andy Murray was fearless on the other side of the net. Philipp Kohlschreiber from Germany ranked 29th in the world, chose to play his his finest tennis. The opening set was even up to a tie-break.
Murray blinked on his own serve, allowing the German to seize the set. It was 7-4 for the German in the opening set's tie-break.
Being a set down, Murray raised his level, putting more often the first serve inside the box. Eventually, he took the lead but he failed to close out the set. Overall, his tennis was decent but Kohlschreiber constantly kept drilling holes through Murray's defense by hitting some shattering forehands. As with the previous one, the set needed a tie-break.
It took almost half an hour for Murray to claim the set. The score -- 20-18 -- sounds pretty much unreal. Along the way, the German had 7 match points but failed to close out the match. On the other side, before closing it out, Murray missed 7 set points too.
In the 3rd set, the 33-year-old player from Germany ran out of fuel. Murray took the set 6-1 and he's now in the semis, with a great shot to win his first title in 2017. Whether he does so or not remains to be seen, however.
Murray's eagerness on the rise
During the match against the German, there were moments when Murray seemed overwhelmed by his opponent's hitting pattern.
But he stood still and bided his time until his opponent's accuracy diminished. The last 2 points of the 2nd set were won by Murray as a result of some unforced errors on the part of the German. This tactical approach might be the one that saved Murray in the end. Also, to come through such a monumental match can only boost his confidence moving forward.
