Shenzhen - Andy Murray won his first title since his historic Wimbledon victory last year, surviving a scare to beat Tommy Robredo in three sets at the inaugural ATP Shenzhen Open on Sunday.
Murray, who is currently ranked 11th by the ATP, overcame the 32-year-old in a tense match in which he saved five match points at the tie break in the second set as he appeared to be heading for defeat.
The 27-year-old Scot then powered through the third set, losing only one game as he closed in on his first title for 15 months.
The victory boosts the British player's hopes of qualifying for November's ATP World Tour Finals in London, the end of season finale which features the top eight mens players.
Murray has now won the last four of his six meetings against Robredo, which includes a victory over the Spaniard in his march to the 2013 Wimbledon final.
Meanwhile, AP reported from Beijing that Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams moved into the second round at the China Open with straight-set victories on Sunday.
The fourth-seeded Sharapova overcame six double-faults to defeat Estonian Kaia Kanepi 6-4, 6-1, while the 16th-seeded Williams came back from a 3-0 deficit in the opening set to defeat Britain's Heather Watson 6-3, 6-1.