Andy Murray advances to Surbiton Trophy final

Andy Murray battled defending champion Jordan Thompson 7-6(5) 6-3 to book his spot in the Lexus Surbiton Trophy final.

Two-time former Wimbledon champion Murray, who earned a wild card entry into next week’s Rothesay Open Nottingham, appeared to be in control of the first set when, aided by a fine backhand volley, he took a 3-0 lead.

However, Australia’s Thompson rallied to capitalize on some unforced errors from Murray to rally and then level the match at 3-3.

Murray held on to leave Thompson serving to stay in the set, which he eventually did after fending off a comeback with a 40-15 lead.

Murray faced more pressure in a major hold at 6-5 and Thompson then held his own to force a tiebreak.

Murray took a 2-0 lead on an early mini-break and moved ahead 4-1 after stretching to make a wide return.

However, Thompson was back to 4-4 level after a long rally.

As in previous matches, Murray again gave himself a stern talk, helping to clinch a set point at 6-5 when Thompson returned to the net and took advantage by firing an ace.

There was a flash point during a close game in the opening of the second set. With the scores at two, Thompson became frustrated after the crowd chanted ‘out’, so the chair umpire overturned the decision and play continued as Murray took the point.

The Australian continued his complaints to referee Robert Balmforth as the players sat under umbrellas during a short rain break.

When play resumed, with a warning to the crowd against any more such outbursts, Murray finally forced half-time and held the 2–0 lead.

Murray broke in the fifth game to go 4-1 ahead when Thompson sank another return into the net, and the Australian later received a foul-ball warning as his frustrations flared again.

A loveless service game brought Murray to the brink of victory, but Thompson broke in the eighth game. Murray, however, finally got the job done when he had a third match point opportunity to seal a place in Sunday’s final, against either Austrian Jurij Rodionov or Belgian Zizou Bergs.

“It was nice to go through in straight sets today,” Murray said in his on-court interview broadcast on the LTA.

“It was a very tight first set, then in the second I got a little better, I started to hit the ball a little better at the back of the court, so hopefully I can continue tomorrow in the final.

“Jordan is a superior player on grass courts. He won here last year and reached the final in Nottingham, so he’s had some good wins on this surface. He expected a tough one, I definitely got it.

“The last two games have been good, against very good grass-court players, with a lot of experience on this surface, so overcoming them is very positive.

“Having the opportunity to play in the final tomorrow is great, I’m looking forward to it.

“It’s been a while since I’ve won a tournament at home and I hope I can do it tomorrow.”