World number one survived Gerald Melzer 7-6(6) 7-5 to continue his 26 match winning streak.
The first set was a tight set as both men played some aggressive tennis as the Austrian took the match to the world number one, as a result he would take the break in the third game to lead 2-1. However the Brit remained unfazed and broke Melzer back for 2-2. A similar pattern was repeated later in the set when Murray broke for a 4-2 lead, for only Melzer to break back and pull it back to 4-3. The aggression from both players lead the first set to go into a tiebreak, which the world number one found a way to take it and grabbed the first set 8-6 in the breaker.
Most players would fade away against the opposition of Murray’s quality but not the Austrian, he became more agressive in the second set and took the match to Murray. His base level of play was very high, which caused extreme difficulty for the Brit and had to be at his very best to fend off the Austrian.
The second set saw both players more consistent on serve, however the Austian’s serve was eventually broken as Murray took a 4-3 lead. The newly knighted Brit then had two match points in the ninth game to seal victory, however he failed to convert. This would cost him in the tenth game as Melzer some how found his way back into the match with some aggressive play and the set was levelled at 5-5.
However that was the last bit of resistance from the Austrian as Murray would win the next two games to seal the match 7-6(6) 7-5 in two hours and 23 minutes. The Brit hit 10 aces en route to a tough second round victory.
The win means he extends his winning streak to 26 matches which dates back to the Asian swing last year. An incredible streak which he will hope to continue in the quarterfinals, where he faces Nicolas Almagro. For Gerald Melzer it was an encouraging performance with plenty of aggression and he will look to continue his fantastic performance today into the rest of the 2017 season.
