World No. 4 Andy Murray of Britain beat injury-hit world No. 1 Rafael Nadal of Spain Sunday afternoon to win the title of the 1.44-million-euro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Going into Sunday's final, Nadal holds a 5-1 head-to-head advantage against Murray in official matches, but Murray won their last encounter at the U.S. Open semifinals last year. The Scot also beat the world's best player in an exhibition match in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, last month.
In the first set, second-seeded Murray broke at the sixth game on Nadal's serve for a crucial 4-2 lead, and eventually won the set 6-3.
Three minutes into the second set, top-seeded Nadal injured his right knee, and had to receive a medical treatment on court. After play resumed, both players struggled to hold serve, with Nadal breaking Murray four times to clinch the set 6-4.
But in the deciding set, Nadal's knee injury began to take its toll, allowing Murray to dictate play, who broke the world No. 1'sserve three times in a row to take the set 6-0, and his 10th career title.
This was the second title for the 21-year-old Scot, who also won in Doha earlier this year. He also became the first Briton to win the 36-year-old Rotterdam tournament.
(Xinhua News Agency February 16, 2009)
