ranked Andy Murray was surprisingly ousted from the US Open by Marin Cilic of Croatia in a lopsided 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 fourth-round match Tuesday. Cilic overcame two set points in the first set, then pounded Murray over the last two to make his first career Grand Slam quarterfinal. Murray, who lost to Roger Federer in the final at Flushing Meadows last year, will finish 2009 without making a major final. The match ended in the late afternoon in New York, and just before newspaper deadlines back in England, where the sports sections follow Murray's every move. Certainly, those headlines won't be nice Wednesday morning. “Today, I could've been better in pretty much every part of my game, whether it was mental, forehand, backhand, return,” said Murray, who conceded that, yes, this was the most disappointing loss of his career. How to explain this setback, coming in a season in which he'd been playing so well, against the Croatian he had beaten in their three previous meetings? Murray was holding his left wrist and grimacing in pain at the end of the first set. He said the wrist had been bothering him for a week or so. Beyond that, he simply looked flat. “Regardless of my wrist, I lost the match,” Murray said. “I returned poorly. He served well and that was really the difference.” Meanwhile, Kim Clijsters dismantled 18th-seeded Li Na 6-2, 6-4 to move only two wins from a US Open title hardly anyone could have seen coming. The mother of 18-month-old Jada pulled off another upset that didn't look like one in the women's quarterfinals, punishing China's top tennis star with deep, stinging groundstrokes that were part of a game that looked about like it did when Clijsters retired two years ago. Or maybe better. “I'm surprised to be sitting here talking to you right now,” said the 2005 champion. Murray only got 64 percent of Cilic's serves back into play, nearly 15 percent below his average this year. Cilic said the set points he saved, serving at 4-5 in the first, were the turning point. He responded by getting ahead 0-40 on Murray's serve in the next game, won the second break point, then took 13 of the next 17 games for his first career win over an opponent ranked in the top three. “It was a relief for me to start getting more into the game,” Cilic said of his reaction after saving the set points. “I didn't have to think too much. I played good, played tactically well, and he was missing,” he added. Murray had 29 unforced errors, 12 fewer than Cilic, but he hit only 13 winners and never looked comfortable in the match in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Cilic's next match is against sixth-seeded Juan Martin del Potro, who defeated No. 24 Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. On Monday, fourth seed Novak Djokovic had an easy time bouncing 15th seed Czech Radek Stepanek 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 and then delighted the crowd at sold-out Ashe Stadium by impersonating John McEnroe's on-court quirks and fiery temper. Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki managed the day's biggest upset when she toppled former champion and number six seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 2-6, 7-6, 7-6 to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal. The ninth seed will face Oudin in the quarters . American John Isner's 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss to 10th seed Fernando Verdasco of Spain marked the first time since 1968 that no American male advanced to the Open quarterfinals. All-Star event in the cards Roger Federer vs. Andy Roddick in a serving speed contest? How about Rafael Nadal vs. Andy Murray in a timed race to chase down drop shots? Those are the kind of matchups that could be featured at an All-Star showcase the head of the men's tennis tour is introducing next year as part of his efforts to help boost the sport's popularity. “We're looking at it as a way to extend our reach, to reach more casual sports fans and tennis fans,” Adam Helfant told The Associated Press Tuesday. “It seems to work in other sports. We'll see if it works here. Our players think it will work.”
