Andy Murray met Milos Raonic in the ATP World Tour Finals on Tuesday evening knowing that defeat would see the Scot eliminated from the competition.
The Scot claimed the first set 6-3 after just 38 minutes of tennis.
Raonic put up more of a fight in the second, but two breaks of serve for Murray allowed the Scot to serve for the match, which he took to secure a 6-3 7-5 victory.
Next up for Murray is a clash with already-qualified Roger Federer on Thursday, while Raonic, who is still in the competition, will take on Kei Nishikori.
Read how it all unfolded in Sports Mole's game-by-game live commentary of the action below.
Hello all! Sports Mole's ATP World Tour Finals coverage continues this evening as Andy Murray faces the Canadian Milos Raonic. Both players lost their opening match of the competition and Murray would be eliminated if he loses again this evening. Raonic, however, could still make the semi-finals even if he loses after Roger Federer beat Kei Nishikori earlier this afternoon.
Just a reminder that Group B is made up of Federer, Nishikori, Murray and Raonic. The former two are currently sitting pretty, with Federer beating Raonic 6-1 7-6 in their meeting on Sunday and overcoming Nishikori today, while Murray was surprisingly beaten 6-4 6-4 by an energetic and impressive Nishikori.
Put simply, Murray needs to win this evening or he will be eliminated from the tournament. Raonic can lose this match and still go through, providing that the Canadian beats Nishikori in his next match and Murray loses to Federer. If that situation occurs, percentage of sets and games won would come into play.
The defeat for Murray against Nishikori was the Scot's fourth loss in 21 matches since the US Open and the 27-year-old has admitted that he is now in a difficult position in the tournament. He told reporters: "It's harder to qualify when you lose your first match. That's pretty obvious. But unlike the other events, you still have a chance to go through. If this were anywhere else, I would be out of the tournament. You need to try to forget about today, work on some things tomorrow, and hopefully play better on Tuesday."
In total, Murray and Raonic have met on six occasions, with the Canadian leading the head-to-head 4-2. The last time that they met was in Indian Wells earlier this year and it was Raonic that triumphed 4-6 7-5 6-3. Raonic also beat the Scot in the semi-finals in Tokyo in 2012. Who will triumph tonight?
Five of their six meetings thus far have been on hard court and the most high-profile match occurred in the last-16 stage of the US Open, when Murray won 6-4 6-2 6-2 en route to winning the competition. However, it would be fair to say that Raonic has improved as a player since that clash in New York.
Raonic will also enter the encounter having won four of his last six matches – including wins over Federer and Tomas Berdych at the Paris Masters. Raonic was eventually beaten by Novak Djokovic in the final of the tournament, but gave a good account of himself in the 6-1 7-6 loss to the Serbian.
Murray, meanwhile, has won eight of his last 10 matches, but lost each of his last two. The Scot lost to Djokovic in the quarter-finals of the Paris Masters, but has recorded decent wins over David Ferrer (twice) and Kevin Anderson in the last few months of tournament tennis.
In terms of what both players have achieved in their respective careers thus far, there is little comparing them. Murray – a two-time Grand Slam winner – won the US Open in 2012 and Wimbledon in 2013, while the Scot has also finished as runner-up in five Grand Slam tournaments.
Raonic, meanwhile, who is ranked at number eight in the world, has not yet made it past the semi-finals of a major tournament. The 23-year-old has twice made the fourth round of the Australian Open, the quarter-finals of the French Open and the semi-finals of Wimbledon in 2014. His best record at the US Open, meanwhile, is three fourth-round appearances – one of which was against Murray.
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Murray has found the Raonic serve difficult to contain in the previous matches between the two players and you just get the feeling that will be important again this evening. Can Murray regain some of the form that he found before the tournament? The Scot needs a big performance it must be said.
UPDATE! We should be underway in the next 15 minutes or so here. The doubles match has now been completed. The main part of the evening is just around the corner.
The atmosphere is really building inside this wonderful arena - the fans are ready that is for certain. What will we see from Murray this evening? It is going to be a truly fascinating match in London.
"I feel good. I feel excited. I am ready to give it my all," Raonic has just told Sky Sports News.
"Hopefully I will hit the ball a little bit better today. I will need to be consistent in this match," Murray has just told Sky Sports News. Both players look a little nervous it must be said!
Both players have just entered the main arena. It is some spectacle it must be said. For the players, this is all about the tennis, but the fans absolutely love the lights and show in London!
Murray wins the toss and the Scot will serve first here...
The knocking up has just begun. There is a special feeling inside the stadium this evening - it is almost like a final! It isn't a Grand Slam, but can Murray really afford to suffer another defeat here?
PREDICTION! For me, Murray will win this in three. I think Raonic will win the first set, but the Scot will recover to claim the victory. We are just moments away here...
Here we go. Murray to serve first...
Raonic fires wide in the first point to hand Murray a 15-0 lead, before coming to the net to stroke down the centre for 30-0. Murray then slices wide, however, to move the Canadian onto the board. A double-fault from Murray leaves the score at 30-30, but Raonic then nets for 40-30. Murray claims the first game with his first ace of the match.
Raonic wins the first point on serve after forcing Murray to clip one into the net, but the Canadian then nets himself to leave the score at 15-15. Raonic responds with a 138mph serve - wow - before Murray fires long for 40-15. The Canadian holds with another powerful serve.
Murray has 15-0 when his opponent clips a backhand just wide, but the Scot then hits the net for 15-15. Raonic takes charge of the next point by coming to the net and whipping one past Murray, but the Canadian then finds the net from a Murray second serve for 30-30. Raonic then hits a forehand long, before Murray holds when his opponent fires long once more. On serve so far.
Perfect start for Murray as Raonic hits a tame one wide for 0-15, but a stunning serve from the big Canadian then levels the score at 15-15. Raonic comes to the net in the next point, but fires wide to hand Murray 15-30. Murray then has 15-40 when Raonic hits one long, but the Canadian finds the line on the next point for 30-40. Murray slips before hitting long for deuce and eventually Raonic holds with a powerful serve. Four points in a row to hold there!
Poor start from Murray as the Scot hits just long for 0-15, but a slice from Murray then forces Raonic to hit the net. Murray produces his best point of the match to move 30-15 ahead with a stunning backhand, before securing 40-15 with a powerful smash. Eventually the Scot holds with another brilliant slice. This first set is still on serve at 3-2 Murray.
BREAK! Nervous first point for Raonic as Murray moves 0-15 ahead, but 15-15 arrives when Murray hits the net. Raonic then fires an overhead smash wide for 15-30, but Murray hits a routine forehand wide for 30-30. Murray sets up break point when Raonic hits wide following a slice from the Scot and Murray indeed takes it when Raonic hits long of the baseline.
Murray moves 30-0 ahead when Raonic finds the net twice in quick succession, before the Canadian follows suit in the next point for 40-0. Murray tries the slice to take the game, but drops it just short for 40-15. The Scot does hold, however, when Raonic hits a forehand long.
Raonic moves 15-0 ahead when Murray hits the net from a wide position, before the Canadian whips a brilliant forehand past the Scot for 30-0. Murray moves onto the board in the next point when Raonic fails to return a powerful forehand, but the server has 40-15 with another fine forehand. Eventually the hold is secured when Murray hits a fairly routine forehand long.
SET! Strong start from Murray as an ace moves the Scot 15-0 ahead, before Raonic hits long for 30-0. Raonic moves onto 30-15 with a sensational pass after somehow repelling Murray pressure, but the Canadian then nets for 40-15. Raonic is far from finished as he thumps a forehand down the line for 40-30, before levelling at deuce when Murray hits a pass just, just wide. The Scot recovers, however, to claim the first set with two excellent serves in quick succession.
Good stuff from Murray there. The Scot has been a lot better than he was on Monday that is for certain. Raonic has shown his class, but has been too inconsistent on his forehand thus far.
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Good start from Murray as Raonic nets for 0-15, before the Canadian hits a forehand long for 0-30. Raonic shows his class in the next point by demonstrating excellent hands at the net, before Murray fails to return a powerful second serve for 30-30. Another excellent point from Raonic - this time a serve and volley - moves the Canadian 40-30 ahead and he holds with an overhead smash. That is much, much better from Raonic, who really needed to hold there it must be said.
Murray comes to the net to move 15-0 ahead, before producing another ace for 30-0. Raonic moves onto the board when Murray hits a forehand long, but the Canadian then fires long for 40-15. Murray secures the routine hold when Raonic clips a forehand long and wide.
BREAK! Raonic moves 15-0 ahead when Murray hits the net following a short exchange, before the Scot nets again for 30-0. Another serve and volley allows the Canadian to move 40-0 ahead, but he then finds the net for 40-15. Murray has deuce following two poor forehands from the server, before double-faulting to hand Murray break point. Murray does indeed take the chance with a cross-court forehand, which Raonic cannot return. Big, big game there!
BREAK! Raonic again finds the net to hand Murray 15-0, but the Canadian collects a Murray drop-shot in the next point before firing past the Scot. Murray then slips before netting for 15-30, but produces a brilliant volley in the next point to level at 30-30. Arguably the point of the match occurs next time out, with Raonic producing a brilliant flick to set up break point, which he takes when Murray fires long. Back on serve here!
Two excellent serves in quick succession blast Raonic into a 30-0 lead, but the Canadian then fires long for 30-15. Murray nets in the next point for 40-15, but Raonic then hits one wide for 40-30. Deuce arrives when Murray whips a backhand down the line, but an overhead smash gives the server advantage. Raonic then hits a backhand just wide, however, to produce deuce two. Eventually Raonic secures the hold after coming to the net and dropping one just over. Well, that was a bit of a marathon game.
Good start from Raonic as the Canadian wins the battle at the net to move 0-15 ahead, before producing a brilliant backhand for 0-30. Murray moves onto the board when Raonic fires a forehand long, before the Canadian nets for 30-30. Raonic loses his third straight point after firing long once again and Murray secures the hold when Raonic fires past the baseline.
Strong start from Raonic as the Canadian hits two excellent serves to move 30-0 ahead, before producing a smash at the net for 40-0. The hold is secured with his third ace of the match.
Not the best start from Murray as the Scot double-faults to hand Raonic 0-15, before firing long for 0-30. Murray moves onto the board in the next point when Raonic hits a forehand long, before the Canadian fires wide to leave the score at 30-30. Raonic follows suit in the next point to hand Murray 40-30 and the Scot holds when Raonic hits the net.
Raonic moves 15-0 ahead when Murray hits a forehand long, before Murray fires wide for 30-0. Raonic somehow misses a forehand in the next point to leave the score at 30-15, but then hits a smash for 40-15. Raonic secures the hold with another ace.
Raonic nets in the first point to hand Murray 15-0, before following suit in the second for 30-0. Murray has the chance to move 40-0 ahead after seemingly taking control of the next point, but the Scot hits a backhand wide for 30-15. Murray has 40-15 in the next point, however, when Raonic can only return past the baseline. Murray holds with another ace.
BREAK! Stunning from Murray in the first point as the Scot anticipates a powerful forehand before angling one past his opponent for 0-15, before Raonic fires wide for 0-30. Murray cannot move onto 0-40, however, as he clips a forehand wide to leave the score at 15-30. The next point brings 15-40, however, when Raonic fires long and Murray secures the break when the Canadian hits the net from close range. Murray will now serve for the match!
GAME, SET, MATCH! Good stuff from Raonic as the Canadian comes to the net to move 0-15 ahead, but Murray responds with an excellent drop-shot for 15-15. Raonic then clips a backhand long for 30-15, but responds with a whipped forehand for 30-30. Another error from Raonic hands Murray match point, but Raonic responds with a powerful return for deuce. Raonic then hits another unforced error to hand Murray his second match point and the Scot takes it when Raonic fires long!
Just what the doctor ordered! Murray is not through to the semi-finals, but he has now given himself a chance. Raonic is still in the competition, but only just. This result also means that Federer has qualified for the semi-finals. The Scot needed a big performance and he produced one here.
"It is nice. Last year was tough to miss, but I am very happy to be back. I want to thank the fans for their support. Now there is a nice match on Thursday to look forward to!" Murray told Sky Sports News.
That is just about it from me tonight. Thanks for joining Sports Mole for the action and be sure to join us again tomorrow for more ATP World Tour Finals tennis. Until then!
