Murray, Nadal survive at U.S. Open

NEW YORK, Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal had to work for their victories Friday before reaching the third round of the U.S. Open.

The leading players in the men's draw have had little trouble during the opening week of the tournament, but that changed Friday for two of the top three in the field.

The second-seeded Murray had 22 unforced errors over the first two sets before finally disposing of Paul Capdeville 6-2, 3-6, 6-0, 6-2.

Nadal, seeded third, played the late-night match and eventually defeated Nicolas Kiefer 6-0, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Murray's third-round opponent will be Taylor Dent, who survived an epic match against Ivan Navarro. Dent eventually survived 6-4, 5-7, 6-7 (1-7), 7-5, 7-6 (11-9). Murray could become the world's top-ranked player after this tournament, but to do so he would have to win the event while current No. 1 Roger Federer suffers a loss Saturday to Lleyton Hewitt in the third round.

In other second-round action Friday, No. 6 seed Juan Martin del Potro ousted Jurgen Melzer 7-6 (8-6), 6-3, 6-3 and No. 7 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was a 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 winner over Jarkko Nieminen.