Andy Murray has become only the 24th player in history to win 600 matches on the ATP Tour after downing Kevin Anderson 6-3, 6-2, at the Cincinnati Masters.
The world No.2 displayed no indication of a potential shoulder injury as he fired 15 winners and five aces past Anderson during his straight sets triumph. During his opening match, Murray received a medical time out to treat his left shoulder.
Thursday’s win in Cincinnati has extended Murray winning streak to 20 matches. The Brit hasn’t lost a match since the French Open. Achieving win No.600, the world No.2 spoke of his delight that he was able to reach the milestone at the tournament where he won his first Masters title.
“It’s cool that it happened in Cincinnati.” Murray said.
“I got a wild card here when I was 18. I also won my first Masters 1000 here, so it’s a place that means a lot to me.”
Murray is one of five active players to reach the milestone. The other four players that have already surpassed the mark are David Ferrer (683), Novak Djokovic (737), Rafael Nadal (801) and Roger Federer (1080).
Awaiting Murray in the quarter-finals will be Bernard Tomic. The Australian stunned Kei Nishikori 7-6(1), 7-6(5), in his third round match. Murray has never lost to Tomic before, however, the Brit is under no illusion of the potential threat he faces.
“He had a good win today against Nishikori,” Murray said. “He’s a talented player. We’ve had some tough matches. He plays with a lot of variety.”
The top seed is one of only two top five players who has been able to reach the last eight at the tournament. Thursday saw shock losses for Rafael Nadal, Tomas Berdych, Stan Wawrinka and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. One of the few players to avoid a shock loss was Milos Raonic, who defeated Japan’s Yuichi Sugita 6-1, 3-6, 6-1.
This season Murray has already won four titles in Rome, Queen’s Wimbledon and Rio. Since May he has only lost two matches (both of them were to Novak Djokovic).
Cincinnati Masters highlights (Watch Murray-Anderson from 3:35 onwards)
