Andy Murray vs. Nick Kyrgios: Score and Reaction from 2015 US Open

Andy Murray entered first-round play at the U.S. Open against Nick Kyrgios with momentum on his side, and a composed and efficient effort allowed him to keep things rolling under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday night.

The world No. 3 downed Kyrgios—7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1—to continue a strong run that has included a defeat of Novak Djokovic in the Rogers Cup final and a competitive semifinal loss to Roger Federer at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

"He's (Murray) in form too, probably playing the best tennis of his life, winning Montreal and losing to Federer last week, pretty tight, so I know that he's one of the best players in the world at the moment," Kyrgios said prior to the showdown, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Murray tallied 18 aces and wielded an edge in first-serve points won (71 percent to 64 percent) that allowed him to stymie Kyrgios' comeback attempt, which was hindered by 39 unforced errors.

With the win, Murray improved to 4-0 in his career against Kyrgios after defeating him at the French Open and Australian Open earlier this year. According to ESPN Stats & Info, Murray is now 32-1 at the U.S. Open when he wins the first set.

Murray told reporters that he expected Kyrgios to come out with intense focus, and the 20-year-old proved him right for a few games, as the New York Times' Zach Schonbrun noted during the first set: 

"To be honest, I think he likes playing on big stages," Murray said, according to Sports Illustrated's Stanley Kay. "That’s where he’s played his best tennis throughout his career. I would expect him to be ready for the match. He gets himself fired up for the big events."

However, some overaggressive tactics deemed that momentary advantage moot as Murray broke right back against Kyrgios to even the first set at two games apiece. Kyrgios' immense potential was on display throughout the first set, though, particularly when he enlisted the help of a tweener to set up an authoritative forehand winner.

The Aussie also stayed competitive thanks to solid net play with the first set on the line, as the U.S. Open noted on Twitter:

And as Grantland's Brian Phillips observed, Kyrgios' ability to stay competitive early was impressive—all things considered:

"

Feels like Kyrgios is still testing the wind, self-annihilating cosmic-meltdown-wise, but this could be going a lot worse.

— Brian Phillips (@runofplay) September 2, 2015"

But Murray stood tall and took the first set thanks to a 7-3 edge in aces and his ability to win 75 percent of his first-serve points in an opening frame that saw Kyrgios lose his composure a bit, according to the New York Times' Ben Rothenberg:

That frustration proceeded to carry over into the early stages of the second set, per Rothenberg:

Kyrgios' evening wasn't a complete failure, though.

According to ESPNTennis on Twitter, the Australian's third-set win marked the first of his career against Murray. With that silver lining in hand, Kyrgios can feel more confident as he seeks to rebound from back-to-back first-round exits in the weeks ahead.

Thanks to his victorious effort, Murray advances to face Adrian Mannarino in the second round of U.S. Open action. Mannarino defeated Konstantin Kravchuk in straight sets, 7-6, 6-4, 6-1, on Tuesday and will enter his second-round clash against Murray as a heavy underdog.

With a second U.S. Open title in his sights, expect Murray to intensify his offerings after laying the foundation for a prosperous fortnight.