A tired Andy Murray lost to Radek Stepanek 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 while a sluggish Rafael Nadal survived another three-setter in the third round of the Paris Masters Thursday. Nadal overcame fellow Spaniard Tommy Robredo 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes, breaking twice in the last three games. Novak Djokovic and defending champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga enjoyed more routine wins, while 2006 champ Nikolay Davydenko lost but secured one of the two last spots in the ATP World Tour Finals this month. The fourth-seeded Murray couldn't overcome a lack of sleep following his three-set win over James Blake that ended at 1:45 A.M. Thursday. “It's obviously limited recovery after a long match,” Murray said. “It's 4 a.m. by the time you get to bed. So it's not perfect preparation for a match. But you still come out and you try and give it your best shot. Wasn't good enough.” After dominating the first set even though he didn't think he played that well, Murray was broken early in the second and never recovered. Stepanek, who reached the Paris final in 2004, clinched the win with a service winner and will next face either Fernando Gonzalez or Juan Martin del Potro. Murray won his sixth title of the season last week in Valencia, where he returned to the tour after a six-week layoff with a wrist injury. He said his overall fitness was good and he will be in good shape after a few days off. Murray will train at the Queen's Club to prepare for the season-ending ATP finals in London. “I played seven matches in the space of eight or nine days and that was exactly what I needed at this stage of the season after having a break,” he said. Robredo broke Nadal for 5-4 in the third set and looked set to claim his first win in six meetings with Nadal, but he missed two easy forehands to let the former No. 1 back in the game. Nadal, who staved off five match points in the previous round, held serve then broke Robredo again for the match when Robredo dumped another forehand in the net. Nadal, who lost in the Paris final two years ago, will face Tsonga in the quarterfinals. Tsonga needed only 52 minutes to beat fellow Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-2, 6-3, and can still grab the eighth and last available spot in London. Tsonga never faced a break point and broke his opponent's serve three times. “I'm not thinking about London,” said Tsonga, who struck 13 aces. “I'm thinking about defending my title.” Simon, who injured his right knee against Ivan Ljubicic in the previous round, was hampered from the start by the wound and struggled to return Tsonga's powerful serves. French Open finalist Robin Soderling also has slim hopes of qualifying for the ATP finals following his victory over sixth-seeded Davydenko by 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. Despite his loss, Davydenko secured his place when seventh-seeded Fernando Verdasco lost to Marin Cilic 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Soderling's next opponent will be third-seeded Djokovic, who defeated French qualifier Arnaud Clement 6-2, 6-2. “I was moving better (than yesterday),” Djokovic said. “I was using the chances to go to the net and to make some winners when they were given to me.” Djokovic, coming off a win over top-ranked Roger Federer in the Swiss Indoors final last week, reached the quarterfinals for the first time. “I want to do well here,” Djokovic said. “I know it's a very important tournament and I just hope to maintain the high level of performance I have had in the last two months.” Julien Benneteau, who upset Federer Wednesday, lost to French compatriot Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-3. Monfils will play Cilic in the quarterfinals.
