Andy Murray is homing in on a first grass-court title since winning Wimbledon for a second time seven years ago.
The three-time grand slam winner decided not to play on the clay of Paris at the French Open this year in order to give himself the best chance over the next five weeks on his favourite surface.
And there has been an early dividend for that decision at Surbiton as he reached the final with a 7-6 [7-5], 6-3 victory against defending champion Jordan Thompson of Australia.
Murray announced earlier in the day his decision not to return to Stuttgart next week where he also reached the final 12 months ago – but instead accepted a wildcard to play in Nottingham.
And the 36-year-old showed some vintage touches in a high-quality first set taken on a tie-break – before a controversial flashpoint in game one of the second set seemed to leave his opponent demoralised.
At deuce there was a call of ‘out’ from the crowd after world No43 Murray’s approach shot landed clearly in, triggering a roar of exasperation from the Scot.
And Thompson, whose return was then volleyed away by Murray, complained unsuccessfully to the umpire that the roar was ‘hindrance’ that should have seen him given the point – going on to lose his serve.
Murray, who still harbours an outside chance of snatching a seeding at Wimbledon if he wins here and does well at Nottingham and Queen’s, said: “I want to win all the tournaments I am in – and I haven’t played that much grass court tennis since 2016.
“But I always feel like I am capable of winning on grass. I got close in Stuttgart last year and was unfortunate in the final. And it’s great to have another opportunity on the grass here tomorrow.
“What I thought happened with the incident was that I hit the approach shot…I was looking right down the line and it landed in the middle of it.
“And then either as he hit the ball or just after he hit the ball there was definitely a call of ‘out’ from right behind where the line judge was. So I obviously thought it was the line judge that called it.
“I was obviously frustrated with that because I saw the ball was good. And then he was saying that because I had shouted out during the point that he should get the point.
“The umpire was saying he was so far out of court and I finished the point with the volley that he didn’t feel it impacted the point.
“You could argue it affected him because I broke in that game. I felt like I was in a good position before that but he was obviously frustrated by that and then when I got the break he would have been thinking about it.
“It was very hot today and a very tough first set with a lot of long points. I did well to get through that, and deserved to win in the second set.”
Murray’s opponent in the final will be big-serving Austrian Jurij Rodionov, ranked No134 in the world – who beat Belgium’s Zizou Bergs 6-2, 6-4.
The pair met in the first round in this tournament 12 months ago with the Briton running out an easy 6-2, 6-1 winner on that occasion.
Meanwhile Katie Swan is targeting a significant double on Sunday at Surbiton – by seeking to claim a first career title on grass, and also snatch the British No1 ranking for the first time.
The 24-year-old from Bristol was hugely impressive in giving up only a single game against fellow Brit Lily Miyazaki in an emphatic 6-1, 6-0 victory.
With Emma Raducanu recovering from wrist surgery, an off-colour Katie Boulter missed out on the chance of guaranteeing herself top spot by losing 6-3, 6-2 to Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer.
However if Swan does not seize her opportunity in Sunday’s showpiece then world No154 Boulter will still just cling on at the summit - also for the first time.
A delighted Swan said: “I didn’t even know the permutations before today. Getting to British No1 would be an amazing achievement.
“I would actually have liked Katie Boulter to have won that match for an all-British final and have a good battle, because she is one of my really good friends.
“But I will take it – if I win the tournament and get to No1, I don’t mind. Everyone is doing their best and I suspect that No1 spot is going to fluctuate quite a lot.
“It feels great. I played probably one of the best matches of my career so far today and I am really excited to still be in the tournament and have a chance at the title tomorrow.
“It is my biggest final that I have ever got to, so that’s exciting. I was basically faultless today. And I am happy to have started off on the grass in such a strong way.
“I don’t really know where it can take me, playing at that level I did today. But my goal is to produce that level day in and day out.
“It is achievable thing to play like that more often, I have felt really confident this week and beating Tatjana Maria in the quarters was probably my best career result, even if not on paper.
“Coming from a set down against last year’s Wimbledon semi-finalist…I took a lot of confidence from coming through that match, and I feel really good physically.
“It is my first final on grass – I don’t think I had even made a quarter-final before on grass, so every result I have had this week has improved my best.”
And Boulter, 26, admitted that if Swan denied her by winning the title, it would be with her blessing and good wishes. She said: “Of course it is a disappointment not to set up an all-British final.
“But if Katie wins the title to get the No1 spot – go on, girl. I want her to get that title tomorrow.
“Look I would much rather be getting my ranking up than having that No1 spot.
“Of course it’s a massive goal, but I wish all the girls the best of luck. I want us all to be getting better and better, and pushing ourselves.”
