World No.28 Dan Evans has maintained his unbeaten run at this week’s Battle of The Brits event with a hard fought semi-final win over former world No.1 Andy Murray.
Evans, who is the highest ranked player contesting the all-British event, recovered from a set down to prevail 1-6, 6-3, 10-8, in what was the first ever meeting between the two players. Twice he looked as if it would be Murray who would be the winner. After dropping the opening in just 43 minutes, Evans then had to fight back from a 1-4 deficit in the deciding tiebreaker.
“You know with Andy, he’s always going to come out with some top tennis. That’s why he’s been as good as he has. He knows when to play good tennis and when to keep the ball in,” Evans told Amazon Prime after.
Throughout the clash Evans hit a total of 20 winners, which was identical to Murray, alongside 13 unforced errors. Furthermore, he won 68% of the points behind his first serve, but just 47% behind his second to seal a place in the final.
Despite coming out on top, the start of the match was all about his opponent. The three-time grand slam champion made a clinical start to the match by displaying some of his best tennis that has taken him to the top of the game. Murray’s coach Jamie Delgardo described his first set performance as one of his best in recent months.
“He played a fantastic set of tennis. He’s been offensive, he’s been going after his serve, using his forehand well. It’s the best set of tennis I’ve seen him play in a long time,” Delgardo commented.
Despite the Murray scare, Evans said he managed to turn his fortunes around with a change in tactics. Throughout the second set he didn’t face a single break point and took advantage of his at times frustrated opponent. Then in the decided he converted his second match point after hitting a forehand shot the brushed the top of the net before landing on Murray’s side of the court.
“I started to come forward a bit more, with my slice especially to get the ball out of the middle of the court,” Evans reflected.
“In the end it came down to the big points. I was very lucky on (the second) match point.’
“I got a little lucky today. I’m just happy to get through.”
Evans will play either Kyle Edmund or Cameron Norrie in the final, who are both ranked in the top 100. He will return to the court later on Saturday to play in the doubles final along with Lloyd Glasspool.
