Williams sisters advance, Murray upset at Southern

Associated Press

MASON

Serena and Venus Williams moved into the quarterfinals of the Western & Southern Open by handling the afternoon heat, humidity and wind. The conditions were too much for Andy Murray.

Murray’s off-day turned into the biggest upset of the tournament, a straight-sets loss Thursday that left him with hardly any hard-court time heading into the U.S. Open.

Murray lost 6-4, 6-4 to France’s Jeremy Chardy, an opponent he’d beaten easily the four previous times they’d played. Murray had trouble controlling his shots on a breezy, 85-degree afternoon.

“I was a little bit uncomfortable with those balls bouncing extremely high,” said Murray, who left the court as soon as the match ended and headed directly to the interview room. “It was fairly hard to control.”

Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Mardy Fish and Juan Martin del Potro also reached the quarterfinals Thursday.

On the women’s side, Serena Williams won her 19th straight match — her last 12 in straight sets — by beating Urszula Radwanska of Poland 6-4, 6-3. Williams hasn’t lost a set since the Wimbledon final, which she won.

She returned to Wimbledon and won the gold medal in singles and in doubles with sister Venus. The travel and the hot conditions have worn her down.

“I have been playing a lot,” she said. “Definitely [need] more energy. Been traveling a lot, been training a lot. You know, it’s been a really big summer.”

Venus Williams beat Sara Errani 6-3, 6-0, a quick match after two long ones the last two days.

“You know, I already got what I wanted at the Olympics this year, so everything else for me is like just amazing,” Venus Williams said.

Murray left town with a little uncertainty.

He won a gold medal in the Olympics at Wimbledon by beating Federer, the highlight of his career. He went to Toronto last week hoping to get in shape for the hard-court season, but had to withdraw from the Rogers Cup because his left knee started hurting.

Murray felt good and moved well in an opening two-set win on center court Wednesday. Playing on the grandstand court a day later, the Scot never got into a rhythm.

Now, Murray heads to New York to practice for the U.S. Open, having played only three matches on hard courts since returning from Wimbledon’s grass.