Murray books place in Qatar semis

DOHA — Andy Murray reached the semi-finals of the Qatar Open by beating French qualifier Alexandre Muller 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

The 35-year-old Murray will next face Jiri Lehecka after the Czech player upset top-seeded Andrey Rublev 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the quarter-finals.

Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion who has had two hip operations, eliminated fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev in the previous round as the Scot seeks his third title in Doha. He’s currently ranked 70th.

The 21-year-old Czech entered the clash off the back of straight-set wins against Damir Dzumhur and Emil Ruusuvuori and he demonstrated his confidence levels in a heavy-hitting performance against the top seed.

Lehecka timed the ball cleanly off both wings, causing damage with his flat forehand to hit through a frustrated Rublev.

He broke twice, sealing his victory after one hour and 41 minutes to improve to 1-1 in his ATP Head2Head series against Rublev.

“These past two months have been very great for me,” Lehecka said in his on-court interview. “I was very looking forward to playing here in Doha on this beautfiul centre court, so I am very happy with the win.”

Lehecka, who is up eight spots to No. 44 in the ATP Live Rankings, reached the semi-finals in Rotterdam last year.

Lehecka ended his 2022 season in style when he reached the Next Gen ATP Finals title match in Milan. Using that run as a springboard, he has made a fast start to 2023.

The 21-year-old now holds an 11-3 record on the year, highlighted by his quarter-final run at the Australian Open, where he earned his first Top 10 win against Felix Auger-Aliassime.

“I have improved everything,” Lehecka said when reflecting on his progress. “Mostly my mentality on the court. I gained confidence from Next Gen and now I have learnt how to use it.”

Rublev was aiming to continue his impressive record at the ATP 250 hard-court event, having reached the final in 2018 and won the title in 2020.

Second-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime will face Daniil Medvedev in the other semi-final.

The 22-year-old Canadian reached the last four by beating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-4, 7-6 (5). Medvedev beat Christopher O´Connell of Australia 6-2, 4-6, 7-5.