U.S. Open: Nadal, Murray roll into quarterfinals

NEW YORK (AP) ? Andy Murray emphatically ended American Donald Young's breakthrough run at the U.S. Open, Rafael Nadal found his game on his way to a comfortable victory and Serena Williams continued her resurgence.

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  By Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY

  Serena Williams moves through to the semifinals with a 7-5, 6-1 victory against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.

By Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY

Serena Williams moves through to the semifinals with a 7-5, 6-1 victory against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.

Williams started slow ? broken in the first game of the match ? but picked up the pace on her way to a 7-5, 6-1 quarterfinal victory Thursday against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.

The fourth-ranked Murray won 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2008. The match was supposed to begin Tuesday, but the players only got in three games Wednesday before rain postponed play again.

Nadal, the defending champ and No. 2 seed, came back from a break down in the first set to beat Gilles Muller 7-6 (7-1), 6-1, 6-2. Nadal trailed 3-0 when play was suspended Wednesday.

The 22-year-old Young was in his first Grand Slam round of 16, upsetting 14th-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka and 24th-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela along the way. A former top junior player who had struggled to live up to high expectations, Young is projected to reach a career-high ranking of around 56th.

Murray quickly took control Thursday, as Young had 53 unforced errors. Murray made his first Grand Slam final at Flushing Meadows three years ago, the only time he previously advanced past the fourth round at the Open.

The 68th-ranked Muller had not faced a seeded player in his first three matches. The lefty from Luxembourg reached the quarterfinals at the 2008 Open as a qualifier for his best performance at a Grand Slam, then was sidelined by a knee injury.

Nadal was coming off treatment for painful leg cramps during his post-match news conference Sunday, then was frustrated Wednesday that tournament officials tried to start play in less-than-ideal conditions.

He still faces a tough road to defend his title, potentially having to play four matches in four days.

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