Murray, who reached the French Open semifinals last week despite injuring his ankle earlier in the tournament, was leading 3-1 against the 2002 Wimbledon semifinalist when play was interrupted by a heavy downpour.
The second-seeded Briton wrapped up the first set when the players returned, but Malisse cut out the errors in the second and snatched it when he broke for the first time at 6-5 after Murray went long with a forehand.
But Murray broke early in the decider and again in the last game to set up a third-round meeting with Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia.
Berdych in Halle quarterfinals
In Halle, Germany, Wimbledon finalist Tomas Berdych beat Jan Hernych 6-3, 7-6 (7) to reach the quarterfinals of the Gerry Weber Open on Wednesday.
The seventh-ranked Berdych broke twice in the first set and closed out the second-round match against his fellow Czech on his fourth match point at the grass-court tournament.
On Tuesday, Berdych saved three match points before beating Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans.
“Missing two serves on match points, you just have to think about it after the match,” said Berdych, the 2007 champion. “But I got back into it and was mentally strong.”
Berdych will play 12th-ranked Viktor Troicki, who ousted Igor Andreev of Russia 6-3, 6-1. The Serb completed the victory in 53 minutes, breaking five times and losing just five points on his first serve.
“It will be a really tough game,” Berdych said. “Only the ranking position could make me the favorite. He is really playing well the last couple of weeks.”
Also Wednesday, defending champion Lleyton Hewitt won his first-round match against Argentina’s Leonardo Mayer 6-2, 6-3.
Hewitt is playing in his first event since Indian Wells in March after struggling with foot and ankle injuries. The Australian said “I didn’t have a lot of high expectations going out there. But things got better as the match went on.”
Mayer was the lucky loser replacement for Roger Federer, who withdrew Monday.
“I wasn’t worried about the draw,” Hewitt said. “I was more worried about how my body feels and getting it right. I just need to play matches and face break points so they become second nature.”
Also advancing to the quarterfinals were Canadian Milos Raonic, a 7-6 (2), 6-3 winner against Tobias Kamke of Germany; and Philipp Petzschner of Germany, who got past Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver, 6-2, 6-4.
Serena to return after nearly a year
Meantime, Serena Williams will make her return from a yearlong injury absence when she contests the Eastbourne tournament next week, signalling she should be fit to defend her Wimbledon title.
A statement from her management released on Tuesday in the US said she accepted a wild card to compete on England’s south coast in one of the traditional grass-court warmup events for Wimbledon, which begins on June 20.
Williams has not played on tour since winning her 13th Grand Slam singles title at the All England Club last July.
“I am so excited to be healthy enough to compete again,” Williams said in the statement. “These past 12 months have been extremely tough and character building. I have so much to be grateful for. I’m thankful to my family, friends, and fans for all of their support.
“Serena’s back!”
Shortly after her Wimbledon win last year, Williams cut her foot on glass at a restaurant in Germany. She played in an exhibition match in Belgium against Kim Clijsters days later. But when she returned to the United States she had the first of two operations for the injury. The second surgery was in October, and she said she spent 10 weeks in a cast and 10 weeks in a walking boot.
The 29-year-old American was then diagnosed in February with blood clots in her lung. After that, she said she needed treatment for a hematoma — a gathering of blood under the skin — on her stomach.
She returned to practice in April, an event she announced via Twitter, posting a picture of herself on court in a pink bodysuit.
Williams’ older sister Venus, a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, also is returning to action after an extended injury absence. Venus has been sidelined since injuring her hip during the Australian Open in January, but her agent said last month she was on track to play at Eastbourne and Wimbledon.
When healthy, the Williams sisters have dominated women’s tennis for much of the past decade. In addition to their 20 total major singles titles, both have spent time at No. 1 in the WTA rankings.
At Wimbledon, the sisters have combined to win nine of the past 11 championships. In that span, the sisters played each other in four of the finals at the All England Club.
