"In the third set, I didn't feel like I would win it. It was tough to get back in, my legs were burning after each point. It was the first time I've felt like that on court. It was more humid today and the court felt like it was burning under my feet. At the end I was not thinking, I was just trying to get the ball onto the court," he said.
Second seed Rafael Nadal, who is the only man besides Murray with a win over Federer this year, boosted his hardcourt confidence by a huge factor with a 7-6 (7/5), 6-3 victory over German Tommy Haas.
Martina Hingis beat Daniela Hantuchova 7-5, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the Rogers Cup.
The former top-ranked player will face fourth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, who defeated Ai Sugiyama of Japan 6-2, 7-6 (6).
The seventh-seeded Hingis fought back from 0-40 to break the Slovak's serve for a 6-5 lead and needed four set points to win the first set.
Hingis, who won the tournament in 1999 and 2000, returned to the WTA Tour this season after three years of nursing foot and ankle injuries and looks to be returning to form.
"It seems that all week people have been withdrawing, but in my section [of the draw], no one wants to retire," Hingis said with a laugh. "The main thing is there's still eight great players out there."
Katarina Srebotnik defeated Canada's Stephanie Dubois 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the final eight.
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