AUSSIE OPEN DAY 8 : Murray Ousted!

Andy Murray was one of the strong contenders for winning the title this time at the Australian open but he went out of the Grandslam in the 4th round itself without doing much damage to the top contenders.

And the man who defeated him is Spain's Fernando Verdasco 2-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. It was a tough fought match with some amazing tennis being played by both competitors.

Murray said he, too, hasn’t been feeling well the last few days, though he refused to use it as an excuse.

“I don’t feel that was the reason why I lost,” Murray said. “I definitely did have my chances, and he played too well. I’m disappointed that I lost. But I’ll try and learn from it. It’s not a disaster. I’m still playing well. I lost to a good player in a very close match. I’ll have more chances to win Grand Slams.”

Murray saved two match points after falling behind 40-0 in the last game but wasn’t able to fend off a third, dumping a backhand into the net.

Murray, who lost in the U.S. Open final last year to Roger Federer, was attempting to become the first British man since 1936 to win a Grand Slam singles title.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, left 2007 runner-up Fernando Gonzalez feeling out of sorts with another dominating performance in a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win. He has yet to drop a set and next faces the sixth-seeded Simon, who advanced when fellow Frenchman Gael Monfils retired with a wrist injury.

“I am playing well, but you never know if it’s going to be enough,” said Nadal, who had 33 winners and just 11 unforced errors.

Fifth seed Jo Wilfried-Tsonga produced an explosive performance that rivalled an overhead fireworks display to beat James Blake in the fourth round of the Australian Open on Monday.

Tsonga, last year’s beaten finalist, won the match 6-4 6-4 7-6 to set up a quarter-final with Fernando Verdasco, who had earlier beaten British fourth seed Andy Murray while Giles Simon defeated Compatriot Gael Monfils 6-4 2-6 6-1