Colsaerts thrilled to end his win drought
back up to 18, while Murray’s will leap more than 100 places to 127 today.
The Scot was playing for a fourth day in a row having fought off weariness to defeat Ugo Humbert in the semi-finals on Saturday.
Wawrinka was a step up, though, and his heavy weight of shot immediately pushed Murray back well behind the baseline.
Murray saved two break points in the second game but not a third and, after the Scot was unable to take two chances of his own in the next game, Wawrinka held comfortably through the rest of the set.
Of all Murray’s many attributes, his sheer bloody-mindedness has probably won him more matches than any other, and that was much in evidence as he somehow took the second set.
He was on the ropes at 1-3 and two break points down but dug in and then got his reward as Wawrinka’s serve went off the boil and his level dipped, with Murray breaking back to 3-3.
Wawrinka had two more chances at 4-4 but again Murray fought off the danger and more shaky serving from the Swiss put him in trouble in the next game.
Murray was furious when, as he looked set to win a long rally at 30-30, an erroneous line call forced the point to be replayed, but he duly played two of his best points of the match to send it to a decider.
Murray was twice a break down early in the third as well but both times hit back straight away and then saved two more break points at 4-4.
That left Wawrinka serving for the match and, although he led 40-15, Murray willed himself back into the game and took his first match point.
The 32-year-old is now expected to take a break until the Davis Cup finals next month as he awaits the birth of his third child.
Murray joked: “I’ll have three kids under four-years-old. I need to get on the road so we don’t get out of control. I’m excited for the third kid. My wife’s been a huge support for getting me back on the court and making me fight to keep playing.”
Former Ryder Cup star Nicolas Colsaerts ended a seven-year winless run on the European Tour with a dramatic one-shot victory at the Amundi Open de France yesterday.
The Belgian had last triumphed at the 2012 Volvo World Match Play Championship, four months before he was part of the European team that famously came back from 10-4 down to lift the Ryder Cup in the Miracle at Medinah.
He carded a closing one-overpar 72 on day four in Paris but that was enough to move him to 12 under and hold off Dane Joachim B Hansen.
“It’s super special,” he said. “I’ve been coming here for so long and missed out a bunch of times and to do it here like this whereattheenditwasdramatic, makes it even better.”