Andy Murray, the 2012 U.S. Open champion, reached this year’s second round by notching his 200th career major win with a victory over Corentin Moutet of France on Tuesday in New York.
Murray, 36, took nearly three hours to defeat Moutet in three sets, 6-2, 7-5, 6-3, and had high praise for his opponent after the match.
“Difficult match against a very skillful opponent, a very different game style to pretty much all of the guys on the tour now,” Murray said. “And, yeah, there were a lot of long points and tricky moments out there, a lot of stuff going on out there on the court. I did well to get it done in three sets.”
Murray had 45 winners against 23 unforced errors, while Moutet had 32 winners with 36 unforced errors.
Meanwhile, in his farewell U.S. Open appearance since announcing his pending retirement, American John Isner posted a straight-sets win over 22-year-old Argentinian Facundo Diaz Acosta, who was making his U.S. Open debut.
Isner fired off 11 aces and racked up 40 winners while defeating Diaz Acosta 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (1).
“It’s not goodbye yet,” Isner told the crowd at Louis Armstrong Stadium during the postmatch ceremony, which was hosted by Isner’s good friend James Blake. “I’m actually feeling pretty good, so I’m going to try to keep this going as long as I can.”
Isner will next face fellow American Michale Mmoh, an unseeded 25-year-old who scored a convincing upset over No. 11 Russian Karen Khachanov earlier on Tuesday, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2. Khachanov, who reached the semifinals last year, committed 46 unforced errors.
—Field Level Media
