Andy Murray pulled out another narrow win on Thursday as he collected an opening round 6-7 6-1 6-4 comeback against Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the Indian Wells Masters.
It is the latest in a string of hard-fought wins for Murray, who has played the maximum number of sets in each of his past 10 victories dating back to the Gijon Open in October, including a pair of five-setters at the Australian Open.
Etcheverry started strong, fresh off his first ever ATP final at the Chile Open, but committed more unforced errors (21) than winners (17) in the second and third sets combined.
Fellow Great Britain representative Jack Draper was far more comfortable in his 6-1 6-1 demolition of Switzerland’s Leandro Riedi, booking an all-English clash against Daniel Evans in the second round.
Marathon man ➡️ Comeback king 👑@andy_murray rallies from a set down to defeat Etcheverry 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4 and reach the second round in Indian Wells!@BNPPARIBASOPEN | #TennisParadise pic.twitter.com/jHFQbvMaXr
— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 10, 2023
Former world number three Stan Wawrinka prevailed 6-4 1-6 6-1 against Aleksandar Vukic, but Vukic’s Australian compatriot Thanasi Kokkanakis flew the flag with a 6-4 6-1 triumph over hometown talent Brandon Holt.
In a better result for the Americans, Mackenzie McDonald breezed past Filip Krajinovic 6-3 6-0 in just 63 minutes, and rising 20-year-old Ben Shelton had no problems in his 6-4 6-1 win over Fabio Fognini in 72 minutes.
Argentina’s Guido Pella ground out 3-6 7-5 6-2 comeback in his South American clash against Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro, and Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff did the same in his European showdown against France’s Quentin Halys, taking it 1-6 6-3 6-3.