Andy Murray is fired up for Cincinnati after knee injury snub by umpire

Andy Murray's anger over chair umpire Cedric Mourier’s refusal to allow him on-court treatment in Toronto could propel the Scot to another fighting performance at the Cincinnati Masters, his final tournament before the Olympics.

Murray will have a scan on his right knee today in Ohio after receiving delayed attention at the end of the first set in the Toronto Masters semi-final on Saturday night, which he lost 7-6, 6-3 to Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal.

Knee worry: Murray will have a scan

The right knee has been a constant worry for world No 9 Murray, who came down hard on the joint on a serve in the 11th game.

Seeking an immediate visit from the trainer at the end of the game, he was denied until the one-hour opening set had ended in a tiebreaker.

‘When I asked for the trainer he (Mourier) said: “Is it for your knee?”. He knew before I even told him that there was a problem there, because I had been limping for two games. He still didn’t let me have the trainer.’

Bad feelings aside, Murray is not anxious about his fitness. ‘I should be okay to play. It’s something that I’ve obviously had for quite a long time. It does hurt from time to time in matches and there’s been a lot of clicking in the knee.’

Murray’s effort against Nadal should serve him well for the big push this hardcourt summer in China and in the U.S. Open starting on August 25.

As for Nadal, he took another step towards the world No 1 spot, beating Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 6-2 in the final to win the Toronto tournament.

He won his 30th career title and tightened the ATP rankings race with Roger Federer.

He stands 300 points behind Federer heading into the Cincinnati event starting today. Nadal — who was last beaten in Rome on May 7 — has now claimed his last five tournaments and 29 consecutive matches.

He can only take over the top spot if Federer loses in the first round and the Spaniard wins the trophy in Ohio.

‘I will think about records when my career is over,’ said the 22-year-old Nadal. ‘Right now, my most important goal was to win Toronto. I want to congratulate Nicolas, sorry for today.’

The German has not won a title since 2000, 140 events ago.