Andy Murray bags ‘important victory’ in Cincinnati

Andy Murray gave a professional display to dispatch Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets in the second round of the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati.

The world number two bounced back from his surprising early exit in Montreal last week to beat the 31-year-old Russian 6-2 6-3 in just 70 minutes.

Murray, a winner in Cincinnati in 2011 and 2008, will next face France’s Julien Benneteau as he continues his preparations for the defence of his US Open title.

“It was an important match for me to get through obviously I want to try and get as many matches as possible this week before the US Open,” said Murray.

“I only got a couple last week so I was a little bit nervous before the start of the match because it was important to get through this one.”