Andy Murray vs. Andreas Seppi: Score and Reaction from 2015 Wimbledon

Andy Murray battled a shoulder injury to get past Andreas Seppi in the third round of the 2015 Wimbledon Open, beating the Italian in four sets: 6-2, 6-2, 1-6, 6-1.

The 2013 champion appeared to be on his way to an easy win, but in the third set, his game fell apart. Seppi took full advantage and seemed on the verge of a major upset, but Murray righted the ship just in time. He'll face Ivo Karlovic in the next round.

Murray and Seppi had to wait a while before they could start their match, as several of the Centre Court matches ahead of them took longer to finish than anticipated. But when the two made their way onto the court, the fans still gave them a rousing applause, per Wimbledon's official Twitter account:

Meanwhile, via BBC Sport, the long wait for local hero Murray took its toll on his fans:

Seppi is a defensive clay specialist, and early in the first set, it was clear his particular strengths didn't match well with Murray. The 2013 champion has been in fine form of late, and he quickly broke Seppi's serve with a series of excellent returns.

Murray aggressively stepped into the court and didn't allow the Italian to get behind the ball, forcing him to move and chase countless shots. The Scot made the difference in the rallies as well, easily leading Seppi in winners in the first set.

As shared by Bet365, that first set was over in the blink of an eye:

According to BBC Tennis, some viewers wouldn't have to worry about missing their favourite show at this rate:

The second set brought more of the same. Murray immediately broke Seppi's serve and cruised from that point on, while the Italian looked a step slow and couldn't find the depth in his shots. Murray remains one of the best during rallies, and with so much space to step into the court, it was almost too easy for the local hero.

Writer Irvine Welsh noted the commentators had some odd advise for Seppi:

The Italian showed plenty of flashes of his potential, but he was too inconsistent during the second set. Unforced errors doomed Seppi, who was looking at a 2-0 deficit before long.

After holding serve in the third set and up two games to one, Seppi asked for an injury timeout, and when he returned to the court―a little late―he was a changed man. Out of nowhere, he started finding his range and hitting winners with his forehand, while Murray suddenly seemed to struggle.

The Scot was seen reaching for his shoulder on several occasions and immediately gave up back-to-back serve games, handing Seppi a 5-1 lead. Daily Record Sport didn't understand what was going on:

Seppi looked every bit as dominant as Murray had through the first two sets, and in 31 minutes, he had clawed back to within a set. Things went from bad to worse for Murray, who also dropped his first serve game of the third set and was starting to grow very frustrated. Live Tennis spotted this reaction from the Scot:

"

If lipreading is any guide, #AndyMurray's feelings on dropping that set rhymed with 'clucking fullspit'. pic.twitter.com/rPdGY23ynk

— Live Tennis (@livetennis) July 4, 2015"

Murray immediately broke back, however, winning his first game in over 30 minutes and shaking the home crowd out of its slumber. Centre Court started getting behind Murray again, and the Scot responded by just about blasting Seppi off the court with four consecutive serves.

The Italian started showing cracks, as mistakes sneaked back into his play, and when Murray broke his serve in the next game, the match appeared to be all but over. 

Murray's worries weren't over yet, however, as he asked for an injury break himself and had his shoulder looked at by a doctor. SI Tennis' Courtney Nguyen shared this image:

The treatment seemed to help, as Murray again broke Seppi's serve and served out the match from there.

After the match, Murray told BBC One he was happy with the way he finished before admitting he'll have to do better in the return game against Karlovic, via BBC Sport:

Murray's fourth-round opponent, Karlovic, is a grass specialist with a powerful serve, and if the Scot's shoulder still bothers him when he returns to the court, he could be in serious trouble. Break chances won't come easily against the Croat, who will be a lot more aggressive than Seppi. 

Fortunately for Murray, he will have an extra rest day, and if his shoulder checks out, he remains one of the favourites to win this year's title. 

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