"Why is he always playing for 3-5 business hours" - Tennis fans in hilarious disbelief as Andy Murray triumphs in yet another thriller in Qatar Open

Andy Murray stunned Alexander Zverev with a thrilling victory at the Qatar Open on Wednesday (February 22). The nail-biting win contributed to Murray's pattern of winning all of his matches in 2023 after enduring long and epic battles.

At the 2023 Australian Open, the former World No. 1 defeated Matteo Berrettini after 4 hours and 49 minutes and saved one match point along the way. In the next round, Murray battled against Thanasi Kokkinakis for 5 hours and 45 minutes to emerge victorious despite losing the first two sets. He eventually faltered against Roberto Bautista Agut in the third round of the Grand Slam.

In his opening match at the Qatar Open, the Brit took on Lorenzo Sonego and saved three match points in the final set before claiming his victory in the tiebreak decider. In a 3-hour and 2-minute long battle, Murray won the first set in a tiebreak. Zverev raised his level considerably in the second set to break Murray twice and equalize the scores. The Brit was only two points away from a loss in the third set when he served to stay in the match. Murray broke the German's serve in the 11th game and won the encounter 7-6(5), 2-6, 7-5.

Even Murray's mother Judy joked about wanting to see a straight sets victory once in a while.

Tennis fans were quick to share their reactions to Murray's rollercoaster victory against Zverev. One fan joked about the Brit always taking 3-5 business hours to close out a match.

"Why is he always playing for 3-5 business hours," a fan said.

Another fan chimed in saying that Murray's commitment to long matches is proving his appeal as a wildcard candidate given the amount of time he spends on the court for every match.

"Andy Murray proving to tournament organisers he deserves a wild card by providing the highest number of minutes played. Want more tennis? You want Andy!" read one tweet.

Here are some more fan reactions:

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Andy Murray will take on Alexandre Muller in Qatar Open quarterfinals

Andy Murray at the 2023 Australian Open

With the defeat of Alexander Zverev, Andy Murray has booked his spot in the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open where he will take on Alexandre Muller.

Murray acknowledged Muller's successful week in Qatar as the Frenchman reached the quarterfinals after coming up through the qualifiers. The veteran stated that he wasn't too familiar with Muller's game and would rely on his coach heading into the match.

“Not so familiar, but he’s obviously had a good week this week coming through qualifying. He will have played four matches now, so obviously likes these conditions. My coach will obviously watch video and stuff tonight to get a bit more familiar with his game, but it’s an opportunity for me in the quarters tomorrow and time to rest up and get ready for that one,” Murray said at a press conference.

Muller caused an upset when he defeated eighth seed Botic van de Zandschulp to advance to the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open.