Advertisement

Tennis-Muttering Murray puts down Marchenko to reach second round

MELBOURNE, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Andy Murray dug himself out of a number of holes before defeating Illya Marchenko 7-5 7-6(5) 6-2 to reach the second round of the Australian Open on Monday. Top seed Murray conceded a 5-2 lead in a first set in which he landed less than half of his first serves, and was down 4-2 after being broken early in the second at Rod Laver Arena. But the Briton rallied, yelling his way through the flat patches before finding his range in the third set as the shadows crept across the centre court. Three-times grand slam champion Murray will next play Russian qualifier Andrey Rublev as he bids for a maiden title at Melbourne Park after five defeats in the final. (Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)