It's Anderson's first trip to the quarterfinals in any Grand Slam, as he was previously 0-7 in round-of-16 matches at Grand Slams, per ESPN Stats & Info. For Murray, it's a huge disappointment, as this marks his earliest exit at a Grand Slam in five years, per Jon Williams of ABC.
"I'm at a loss for words right now," Anderson said in his post-match interview on ESPN. "Obviously, coming out and playing Andy is incredibly tough, and I think I just played one of the best matches of my life."
Anderson controlled the match with his powerful serve, averaging 125 mph on his first serves, ripping 25 aces (to 19 for Murray) and winning 79 percent of his first-serve points, per USOpen.org. His power was on display throughout the match, as he finished with an astonishing 81 winners to Murray's 49.
Neither player earned a break in the first set, with Anderson winning the tiebreaker 7-5 on this forehand, per the U.S. Open on Twitter:
Anderson then steamrolled his way to a 5-1 lead in the second set. Murray was finally able to break Anderson in the seventh game and held serve in the following game, needing one more break to climb his way back into the set. Anderson was having none of it, however, and sealed the deal in the next game on his fifth set point, per the U.S. Open on Twitter.
Anderson had the momentum and looked poised to dispense of Murray in straight sets, breaking him again in the opening game of the third set. Murray broke Anderson for the second time in the match just one game later, however, evening the set at a game apiece. Murray then won the next two games, but Anderson broke him in the fifth game and held serve in the sixth to even things at three games apiece.
The two then held serve in the next six games to send the match to its second tiebreaker. This time, the tiebreaker belonged to Murray, however, 7-2.
"He's such a fighter, such an amazing player," Anderson said of Murray on the ESPN broadcast. "I knew I just had to stick with it, keep fighting," he added when asked how he recovered after dropping the third set.
The streak of games without a break extended to 18 as the match headed to a third tiebreaker in the fourth set. Anderson seized the momentum, though, winning all seven points to complete the upset in remarkable fashion.
Awaiting Anderson is No. 5 seed Stan Wawrinka, so a trip to the semifinals will be a tall task. Anderson isn't likely to back down, though.
"Right now, I'm just so excited to be through," he said. "That's the first step: beating a player like Andy. Stan's an amazing player. I've played him a few times now, so I've just got to come out and do it again."
If he has the energy to do it again, that is.
After the marathon against Murray, few would blame Anderson for being drained. But still, a match against the equally powerful Wawrinka promises to provide some exciting tennis in the quarterfinals.
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