Andy Murray reaches first ATP semi-final since 2017 French Open

Former World No.1 Andy Murray has reached his first semi-final at an ATP event in over two years after his hard-fought win against Marcus Copil in the quarter-finals of the Antwerp Open on Friday. However, it was not the perfect match for Murray as he squandered a 4-1 lead in the second set to lose it in a tie-breaker as Copil saved a crucial match point. Murray’s persistence saw him through though as he overcame Copil in his 6-3, 6-7 (7-9), 6-4 victory. This is Murray's first semi-final appearance on the ATP Tour since the 2017 French Open.

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Murray sealed victory after more than two and a half hours on court with an ace for his third win in three meetings against the 92nd-ranked Copil. He returned from a major hip injury that he suffered earlier in the year. In the semi-final, Murray will face World No. 70 Ugo Humbert, who defeated Argentine fifth seed Guido Pella 5-7, 6-4, 6-4. Italian teenager Jannik Sinner became the youngest ATP semi-finalist after defeating Francis Tiafoe of the United States 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. The teenager will face fourth seed Stan Wawrinka, who outlasted Gilles Simon of France, 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 6-2

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Andy Murray: Things are going in the right direction 

Murray, who is now ranked a lowly 243, would hope to add on to his 3 Grand Slams after a successful rehabilitation from his second hip surgery. “That will be the first time I’ve played three days in a row of singles,” Murray said on the ATP Tour website. “Although the match was long tonight, physically it wasn’t that draining because there were quite a lot of quick points, on his service games especially. Things obviously are going in the right direction and I feel like I’m hitting the ball better from the back of the court,” Murray said. “I just need to improve the serving, and if I do that then I’ll give myself a lot of chances in matches,” he concluded.

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