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ATP Valencia 500: Andy Murray faces Fabio Fognini live on Sky

Andy Murray was beaten by  Fabio Fognini (r) when they last met during a Davis Cup  tie in Naples in April
Image: Andy Murray: Beaten by Fabio Fognini (r) when they last met in Davis Cup tie

Andy Murray continues his battle to qualify for the end of season World Tour Finals in London when he faces the talented Fabio Fognini at the Valencia Open 500 on Thursday.

Victory over the Italian would take him into the quarter-finals of the indoor event as he bids to secure his spot in the elite eight-man field at the O2 Arena in November.

The 27-year-old Scot has enjoyed some encouraging form during early autumn by winning tournaments in China and Austria.

His victory in the final in Shenzen during September earned him a first ATP Tour title for more than 14 months and over the past few weeks he has risen to No 8 in the ATP Race to London standings.

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Murray knows he cannot afford to slip a single place in this list if he wants to compete at the O2 Arena and he is also aware that Fognini will provide him with a real test on Thursday afternoon – a match which can be watched Live on Sky Sports 3 HD.

The last time the pair met was in early April when Fognini breezed past Murray in straight sets (6-3 6-3 6-4) as Italy edged out Great Britain in their World Group Davis Cup tie on clay in Naples.

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Fognini, a clay-court specialist who is just nine days younger than Murray, is No 18 in the Race to London list and also holds a 2-1 winning record over his next opponent.

However, Murray – thanks to his improved recent form – will go into today’s match as the favourite to set-up a last eight tie with South African Kevin Anderson, the No 7 seed.

Murray has won 18 of his last 21 matches on Tour and should have enough expertise to beat Fognini on an indoor hard court.

And should the No 3 seeded Murray make it to the semi-finals in Spain this week, he could face the top seed David Ferrer who is ranked one place lower in the Race to London standings. Murray beat Ferrer in last Sunday’s Vienna final.

Next week's Paris Masters is the final qualifying event ahead of the London Finals which begin on November 9.

Watch the culmination of the men's tennis season in Valencia, Basle, Paris and London, live on Sky Sports.

With a Sky Sports Week Pass you can watch each Andy Murray match without a contract on NOW TV

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