Andy Murray sees off Alexander Bublik challenge to reach last eight in Stuttgart

Andy Murray defeated seventh seed Alexander Bublik to reach the quarter-finals of the Boss Open in Stuttgart.

The Scot has headed to Germany for his first ATP Tour event of the season on grass and will face top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas next after seeing off Kazakh Bublik 6-3 7-6 (4).

Murray had to work hard in the second set after dropping serve twice in succession, but saved two set points at 2-5 and another two games later before winning five of the last six points in the tie-break.

It was a third meeting between the three-time grand slam champion and 42nd-ranked Bublik this season, with Murray taking a 2-1 advantage.

Bublik is known as one of the more flamboyant players on tour, and Murray said in his on-court interview: “He’s predictable in his unpredictability. You’re prepared for some amazing shots and then maybe some loose games.

“Today he played some amazing stuff for five or six games in the second set and everything was coming off. I was getting a bit frustrated but I kept fighting, held a tough game at 5-2 and then I thought I played well through to the finish.”

Murray’s only previous meeting with Tsitsipas was a memorable one in the first round of the US Open last year, when he led by two sets to one only to lose in five.