Murray wins, but Stephens loses

Showing signs of returning to his old form, right down to the return winner on the last point, Andy Murray moved into the third round at the Citi Open in Washington by beating No. 4 seed Kyle Edmund 7-6 (4), 1-6, 6-4 on Wednesday for just his third victory since having hip surgery.

The three-time major champion and former No. 1 was sidelined for 11 months because of his hip injury. He missed the second half of 2017, had an operation in January, then returned to the tour briefly in June. One of his three matches that month was a loss on a grass court to Edmund, the Australian Open semifinalist who has supplanted Murray as Britain’s highest-ranked man.

Murray is ranked 832nd, has played only five matches in the past 12 months, and needed three sets for each of his victories in Washington’s hard-court tuneup for the U.S. Open.

Earlier Wednesday, reigning U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens continued her tendency for all-or-nothing showings at tournaments, losing 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the second round to 91st-ranked Andrea Petkovic.

Stephens was seeded second in a tournament she won in 2015 for her first WTA title.

“Hopefully,” Stephens said, “some things connect in the next couple of weeks.”

The U.S Open begins Aug. 27. Stephens’ best results this season were a runner-up finish at the French Open and a title at the Miami Open. Take away those and the American is 10-11 in 2018, including first-round exits at Wimbledon and the Australian Open.