World No. 1 Andy Murray booked his spot in the last 16 of the Australian Open after powering past Sam Querrey in straight sets on Friday.
A five-time runner-up at Melbourne Park, Murray dispatched of the American 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 in the third round.
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Murray — whose quest for an elusive Australian Open title has opened up after two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic was sensationally bundled out on Thursday — was tested early but once the Brit got going, he was too good.
The three-time Grand Slam champion will face Mischa Zverev in the fourth round after an hour, 59 minutes on Hisense Arena.
Revenge
There was revenge in the air for the Murray camp after older brother Jamie and his quest to defend his double's title was ended by Querrey and Donald Young in the first round in Melbourne.
And Murray exacted some revenge for his brother, despite a tough start as the pair went toe-to-toe in the opening set.
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Querrey threatened to pull clear after earning a break point in the eighth game but the Olympic gold medallist fended it off and held serve.
That was the turning point for Murray as he broke in the ninth game and served out the set following Querrey's forehand into the net.
Querrey looked deflated from then on, struggling to match the intensity and tempo of Murray, who raced through the second set with 10 winners and two break points.
Life was breathed back into the contest by Querrey, who broke Murray to level the third set at 3-3, but the latter kept his composure and eventually regained the break in the ninth game and closed out the match.
STATISTICAL BREAKDOWN
Murray [1] bt Querrey 6-2 6-2 6-4
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Murray – 40/22
Qurrey – 31/27
ACES
Murray – 8
Qurrey – 5
BREAK POINTS WON
Murray – 5/8
Qurrey – 1/3
FIRST SERVE PERCENTAGE
Murray – 65
Qurrey – 61
PERCENTAGE OF POINTS WON ON FIRST/SECOND SERVE
Murray – 77/50
Qurrey – 57/53
TOTAL POINTS
Murray – 97
Qurrey – 76
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