British third seed Murray overcame dropping a set for the second time in the tournament to set up a clash against Stanislas Wawrinka, the ninth-seeded Swiss, who put out Czech fifth seed Tomas Berdych.

Murray has an 8-5 winning advantage over Wawrinka, although the Swiss won their third round clash in New York in 2010.

The 26-year-old Murray took his record in the majors this year to 17-1 with his second win of 2013 over Istomin after also seeing off the Uzbek player on his way to the Brisbane title in January.

Istomin, the 26-year-old world number 65 who has been coached by his mother Klaudiya since his junior days, sported a bright orange shirt for the encounter and he had Murray dazzled in the first set. "It was tough with a strong breeze and we both struggled with our timing," said Murray. "I tried to dictate the points after the first set when I had the wind with me and use my forehand more."

On facing Wawrinka, the Scot added: "He's a very tough player. He's been playing great tennis for years and will go higher in the rankings after this tournament. "We played on this court a few years back when we were much younger, but a lot has changed since then."

Despite the first-set loss, Wimbledon and Olympic champion Murray roared back with breaks in the second and sixth games of the second set and then took the third.

With Hollywood superstar Leonardo DiCaprio watching from the stands, Murray was never at his most fluid, berating himself for a series of silly errors as well as the perceived shortcomings of the Hawk-Eye challenge technology.

Despite an uncharacteristic 35 unforced errors, he still had too much firepower and craft for Istomin and wrapped up victory in a shade over three hours. (AFP)