|
 Djokovic was made to work for his 7-6(3) 7-5 6-0 win over world
number 65 Dolgopolov.
After dropping the first set the top-seeded Serbian found himself in
even deeper trouble by falling behind 4-1 in the second and facing
the threat of an unexpected early exit.
But Djokovic dug deep to turn things around, breaking to get the set
back on serve at 4-3 to the Ukrainian and then broke again for a 6-5
lead.
Having seen his chance of an upset slip through his hands,
Dolgopolov faded quickly and badly dropped the third set where a
dominant Djokovic won 24 of 27 points.
"I was literally a game or two from losing the match. I'm just happy
to be able to bounce back," said Djokovic.
"These particular matches do help me in a certain way mentally to
gain that confidence and self belief in a way that I never give up
and battle till the last point, and it sends a message to the other
players, as well," he added.
Djokovic, who is seeking a fifth title at Key Biscayne, will face
Spaniard David Ferrer in the quarters.
World number four Murray beat South African Kevin Anderson 6-4 3-6
6-3 to become the 46th man in the Open Era to reach 500 career wins
and the first British male. He is one of only nine active players to
have reached the milestone.
Anderson fought back well in the second but after trading early
breaks in the third the Scot took control breaking his South African
opponent again to grab a 3-1 advantage and never looked back.
Murray will face Austrian Dominic Thiem, who reached his first
Masters 1000 series quarter-final after beating France's Adrian
Mannarino 7-6(5) 4-6 7-5.
[to top of second column] |
Czech Tomas Berdych made it six quarter-finals out of six
tournaments this year after he advanced when Frenchman Gael Monfils
retired in the second set after a bad fall. Berdych was leading 6-3
3-2.
Berdych will next face Argentine Juan Monaco, a 6-3 6-3 winner over
Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.
Japan's Kei Nishikori, the fourth seed, beat Belgian David Goffin
6-1 6-2 and will face American John Isner, who beat Canada's Milos
Raonic in three tie-breaks.
Isner trailed by a set and was 3-0 down in the second but emerged
from the battle of two of the game's biggest servers with a 6-7(3)
7-6(6) 7-6(5) victory.
(Editing by Frank Pingue/Greg Stutchbury)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
