Andy Murray won the 2013 Sony Open, also known as the Miami Masters, with a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-1) win over David Ferrer on Sunday. Murray survived a break-filled third set in which both men struggled while on serve, but Murray managed to take control in the tie-break. Murray now moves up to the No. 2 world ranking, ahead of Roger Federer.
Sony Open Tennis 2013 men’s final: Andy Murray wins break-filled match
Andy Murray won a three set battle with David Ferrer to capture the 2013 Sony Open, improving his ranking to No. 2 in the world.
Clive Brunskill
The third set began with six straight breaks before Ferrer finally got the first hold of the set to go up 4-3. Murray answered back with his first hold of the set and then got another break to go up 5-4 and serve for the title, but couldn’t come through on serve, sending the set to a 5-5 tie.
Ferrer got his second hold of the set at a crucial moment, taking a 6-5 lead. In the 12th game of the set, Ferrer got to a championship point, but couldn’t get the final break to close it out. In the tie-break, Murray got out a 4-0 lead and didn’t look back.
Ferrer won the first set by saving three of four break points he faced and converting all three of his own break opportunities. Murray came back in the second set to send the match into a decisive third set, where both faced mental and physical hurdles, squandering service game after service game.
This is the second championship of the year for Murray, who also won the Brisbane International in January, but by far the biggest. The Sony Open (or Miami Masters) is considered one of the top tournaments of the season outside of the Grand Slams, as part of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 series. Murray won the event once before, defeating Novak Djokovic in 2009. Djokovic won both the 2011 and 2012 editions of the tournament.
Top-seed Djokovic lost to Tommy Haas of Germany in the fourth round, opening the door for No. 2 Murray and No. 3 Ferrer. The loss marked the first time Djokovic lost prior to a semifinal since losing to Sam Querrey in the second round of the Paribas Masters in Oct. 2012.
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