Pospisil, runner-up in S.F., shocks Murray in BNP

Vasek Pospisil serves in the final of last
month's KPSF Open in San Francisco.
Photo by Mal Taam

   Vasek Pospisil, who reached the final of a minor-league tournament in San Francisco one month ago, stunned top-ranked Andy Murray 6-4, 7-6 (5) on Saturday in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
   Pospisil, a 26-year-old qualifier from Canada, has plunged from a career-high No. 25 in 2014 to No. 129. He hired International Tennis Hall of Famer Mark Woodforde as his coach at the end of last season.
   "I feel like I'm on a comeback trail," Pospisil, who lost to qualifier Ze Zhang of China in the final of last month's $100,000 KPSF Challenger in San Francisco said on bnpparibasopen.com. "I had a tough year last year for many, many different reasons. I feel the last couple months I really found my hunger and my motivation to be back on the court training hard again.
   "I felt like a big result was coming, because I believe in my abilities, but just kind of had to put the pieces together again. Obviously to beat the No. 1 player in the world is incredible. It's the biggest win of my career, and I'm just thrilled right now."
   Pospisil reached the third round at Indian Wells for the first time in five appearances. However, he won the 2015 doubles title with American Jack Sock one year after they took the Wimbledon crown.
   Pospisil will face qualifier Dusan Lajovic of Serbia in the third round on Monday. Lajovic surprised 30th-seeded Feliciano Lopez, a 2015 quarterfinalist from Spain, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (2).
   Murray, who received a first-round bye, played his first singles match since winning the Dubai title on March 4.
   The 29-year-old Scotsman has had mixed results at Indian Wells. He advanced to the final in 2009, semifinals in 2015 and quarterfinals in 2010 and 2013. But this was the third time in seven years that Murray has lost his opening match in the tournament. He fell in the second round to Donald Young in 2011 and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in 2012. Murray also lost to Federico Delbonis, 7-6 in the third set, in the third round last year.