Andy Murray on Sunday won his first title since his historic Wimbledon victory last year, surviving a huge scare to beat Tommy Robredo in three sets at the inaugural Shenzhen Open.
Murray, who is currently ranked 11th, overcame the 32-year-old Spaniard in a tense match in which he saved five match points in the second set tie-break.
The 27-year-old Scot powered through the third set, winning his first title for 15 months 5-7, 7-6 (11/9), 6-1.
“It’s been a long time since I won a tournament,” said Murray.
“The way that the match was won doesn’t happen very often. It’s rare to win a match like that. I was very close to losing.
“It was an emotional week for me. I managed to fight my way through it, win the title, and hopefully I can win another one before the end of the year.”
The victory boosts his hopes of qualifying for November’s ATP World Tour Finals in London, which features the season’s top eight 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 title.
The win moves the Scot closer to Tomas Berdych, who currently occupies the final qualifying place for the London tournament.
Murray is also scheduled to play two further tournaments in China where 1,500 points are available. He is the sixth seed at the China Open this week, which is worth 500 points for the winner, and he will play at the Shanghai Masters, which is worth 1,000 points.