Andy Murray overcame a tricky test against Australian qualifier Max Purcell to progress to the third round of the Canadian Open on Wednesday.
Fresh from an impressive straight-sets victory over Lorenzo Sonego in round one, Murray was pushed to the limit against Purcell but managed to come through 7-6[2] 3-6 7-5 in two hours and 47 minutes.
Murray drew first blood in the fourth game of the match for a 3-1 lead before Purcell - hitting 20 winners compared to just eight for the Briton in the opener - broke back immediately.
However, the Australian failed to recover from an early double fault in the tie-breaker, as Murray stormed ahead to take the first set, but Purcell fought back admirably.
The world number 78 won 73% of points behind his second serve in the next set, where he broke Murray to love in the sixth game and saved another break opportunity from the three-time major winner to level the contest.
Purcell soon took control of the deciding set too, breaking in the fifth game for a 3-2 lead before firing three consecutive aces past the 36-year-old to back up the break in some style.
However, in true Murray fashion, the former world number one refused to give up the ghost, and he won the next three games on the bounce, breaking back on a Purcell double fault.
Murray had two chances to wrap up the match on Purcell's serve in the 10th game, but the Australian came back from 15-40 down to stay alive in the contest and ostensibly set up another tie-breaker.
While serving to stay in the match in the 12th game, though, Purcell lost his way and then some, falling 40-0 down and eventually bowing out on Murray's 23rd winner of the day.
Murray's reward for his endeavours will be a third-round affair with Italy's Jannik Sinner, who navigated his way past countryman Matteo Berrettini in straight sets 6-4 6-3 in just over 90 minutes.
Elsewhere, Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud, Iga Swiatek and Daniil Medvedev also made it through to the third round, but several upsets saw Stefanos Tsitsipas, Maria Sakkari, Holger Rune, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Andrey Rublev bow out.
Ben Knapton
