Murray crashes out in Monte Carlo

 

Originally published on: 18/04/13 00:00

The Scot, who has never won an ATP title on clay, slumped to a 6-1 6-2 third-round defeat to Stanislas Wawrinka, a result which will see Roger Federer return to world No.2 at Murray's expense.

Murray arrived in Monte Carlo on the back of victory at the Sony Open in Miami and expressed confidence that he had improved on clay, his least favourite surface.

Although he eased past world No.81 Edouard Roger-Vasselin in his opener on Wednesday, the No.2 seed came unstuck against Wawrinka, who claimed only his sixth career victory against a top-ten opponent.

"He's an amazing player. He's always tough to beat," Wawrinka said. "Therefore, to beat Andy that easy was a big surprise, for sure.

“I'm playing really good, really strong, really confident with my game. I know what he's looking for in his game. He's playing slow, he's playing from the baseline, he's not putting so much pressure. For me on clay, it's perfect."

Next up for Wawrinka will be Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who sailed into the quarter-finals with a resounding 6-3 6-0 win over Jurgen Melzer.

Grigor Dimitrov defeated Florian Mayer 6-2 6-4 to set up a quarter-final clash with eight-time defending champion Rafael Nadal, who eased past Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-2 6-4.

For the second day running, top seed Novak Djokovic was forced to come from behind to secure his progress. Djokovic, who has been struggling with an ankle injury, rallied from a set down to beat Juan Monaco 4-6 6-2 6-2.

There was another upset at the Monte Carlo Country Club as Fabio Fognini claimed the scalp of Tomas Berdych with a 6-4 6-2 victory. Fognini will face the in-form Richard Gasquet in the last-eight after the Frenchman defeated Marin Cilic 7-5 6-4.

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