Andy into Rd 2

05 May, 2008 | 22:05

 

Andy will face Stan Wawrinka in the second round of the Masters event in Rome after Juan Martin Del Potro retired in the third set of their match with what appears to be a serious back injury.

With Andy 1-0 in the third set, the Argentine appeared to tweak his back, stepping in from the baseline.

Within moments he was in his chair, and obvious distress as first the tournament doctor, then trainer gave him attention before signalling to umpire Fergus Murphy that he couldn't play on.

With Andy 5-7 6-4 and 1-0 up overall, the match was over.

It capped off an edgy, dramatic contest in which both players had traded words, but after offering a consoling pat on the back to the Argentine, Andy went off court knowing he'll face the Swiss No. 2, and his good mate Stan Wawrinka after he came through against Marat Safin 6-7 6-2 6-1.

It was the Argentine who took the early advantage in an opening set punctuated with a 30 minute rain delay; breaking three times to Andy's two, he struck decisively in game 12 for the 7-5 advantage.

Andy scored the first blow in a tighter second set, breaking for a 4-3 lead in game seven, only to see Del Potro immediately restore parity.

But with tensions rising between the players on court, Andy then struck the decisive blow, breaking for a 5-4 lead, then serving out the set to level the match.

Two return winners in the opening game of the third helped him to another break, before distaster struck for the Argentine.

A back injury forced Del Potro's withdrawl from the Aussie Open earlier this year, and it remains to be seen just how serious this latest problem is.

Match Stats