Former Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki in awe of Andy Murray after the Brit prevails in a marathon at Indian Wells

German tennis player Sabine Lisicki was in awe of Andy Murray and said he is an inspiration to many after the British player dug deep to beat Tomas Etcheverry 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-4 in the first round of the Indian Wells Masters.

The marathon match went on for three hours and 12 minutes and Murray prevailed after showing tremendous grit and perseverance. Murray seems to have a penchant for deciders this season as all his seven wins have come in deciding sets.

Sabine Lisicki took to social media to express her feelings after Murray prevailed in a marathon.

"He is simply an inspiration for many," she tweeted with a folded hands and a heart emoticon.

Andy Murray will next face Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta in the Round of 64 and a potential Round of 16 clash against top-seed Carlos Alcaraz.

Andy Murray aware that law of averages would catch up sooner than later

Andy Murray exults after his first-round win at the BNP Paribas Open. (PC: Getty Images)

Andy Murray has played many deciders during his career and has lost many of them. This year, however, the Brit has prevailed in all deciding sets he has faced.

The former World No. 1 did not want to read too much into the situation and said he knew that the law of averages could catch up to him sooner rather than later.

Speaking at a post-match press conference after his win over Tomas Etcheverry, Murray said winning in the deciders is not a coincidence.

"I don't think it is a coincidence, but last year I lost a lot of them. I was talking to my team about it, just saying like the law of averages... this can't keep going. Once I won one, I did feel like I would start to feel more comfortable in those situations. Thankfully, that's been the case. Obviously winning all seven, I'm aware that at some stage I'm going to lose one of them," he said.

Murray has been a part of grueling contests in the past, with his second-round match at the 2023 Australian Open against Thanasi Kokkinakis entering the record books as the longest match of his career. The match lasted five hours and 45 minutes and went on to become the third-latest finish to a tennis match on record.

Andy Murray, ranked 55th in the world, will not drop points at Indian Wells this year as he has already matched his 2022 result. As he goes deeper into the tournament, he stands to win more points and enter the top 50 in the world. Murray faces Pablo Carreno Busta on Sunday, March 12.