Andy Murray played two marathon matches in the first two rounds of the 2023 Australian Open, and he was successful on both occasions.
In the third round of the event, he took on Roberto Bautista Agut from Spain, who is no stranger to long matches and so the former world no. 1 had to be ready for another marathon. However, the 24th-seeded Spaniard proved to be too strong for the exhausted Scot, and his journey in Melbourne ended already in the third round.
The first set was a fast one. Bautista Agut created plenty of break points, while Murray couldn't find his rhythm and lost 1-6, after he lost 14 out of the first 15 points.
The Spaniard got ahead also in the second set, and if he used his break point in the seventh set, he would be serving to win the second set 6-2 and lead 2-0 in only a little bit more than an hour. But Murray, who is known for his comebacks, showed his fighting spirit once again.
He got a break back and saved also two set points in a tie-break, to win it 9-7 after an hour and 20 minutes, to tie the score of the match.
Fans in Melbourne were already getting ready for another tie-break at the Margaret Court Arena, as both players held their serve without any problems for a long time in the third set. But Bautista Agut got a crucial break in the eighth game and won the set 6-3.
Murray got away perfectly in the fourth set, to begin his journey of forcing yet another decider at this year's Australian Open. However, this time, he ran out of gas and Bautista Agut won the match in three hours and 32 minutes, 6-1, 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-4.
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