Brisbane, Australia – Reigning champion Andy Murray needed all three sets to win his second-round match at the season-opening Brisbane International tennis event, an Australian Open tune-up.
The top-seeded U.S. Open and Olympic titlist opened his 2013 season with a 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 victory over game Aussie qualifier John Millman on the hardcourts at Queensland Tennis Centre. The British star moved on in 2 hours, 5 minutes on Day 4.
Murray, who beat Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov in last year's Brisbane finale, will encounter Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin in Friday's quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, capable Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov ousted second-seeded Canadian slugger Milos Raonic 6-3, 6-4 and Istomin erased wild card and aging Aussie hero Lleyton Hewitt 7-5, 7-5. Dimitrov won all 26 of his first-serve points en route to his upset of Raonic.
The former world No. 1 and two-time major champion Hewitt captured this event in 1998 and 2000 and was the runner-up in 1999 when it was held in Adelaide.
One other second-round bout saw seventh-seeded Austrian left-hander Jurgen Melzer top rising Belgian David Goffin 6-4, 7-6 (7-4).
Friday's other quarters will pit third-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon against former Aussie Open runner-up Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus, a fourth-seeded Dolgopolov versus fifth-seeded Japanese Kei Nishikori, and Melzer against Dimitrov.
Fox News First
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox.
By entering your email and clicking the Subscribe button, you agree to the Fox News Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content and promotional communications from Fox News. You understand that you can opt-out at any time.