Andy Murray ends 77 year drought as the British no.1 wins Wimbledon in straight sets
The 77 year wait is over, the pressure can finally begin fall off Murray's shoulders as the 26 year old Scot wins his second Grand Slam and his first on home soil.
As Doug Dickson carried the players' bags out on to centre court for the last time after 42 years of service, the day was already shaping up to be one to remember. Murray was walking out to play a Wimbledon final match for only the second time in his life, Djokovic on the other hand had been here, done that and got the trophy after beating Nadal back in 2011. The 15,000 that filled centre court and the thousands more that perched, or more like squished, themselves on to Henman Hill, were ready to see the Scot end the 77 year wait for a British Wimbledon champion.
Numerous questions were asked of both players before they struck the first ball. Would Djokovic be suffering after a marathon 5 hour semi-final against Del Potro? Was the pressure of expectation going to be too much for Murray? With the court side temperature at 40 degrees the biggest question was, how will they cope with the heat? However, Djokovic and Murray are the best tennis players in the world and have trained to the highest standard. Their recovery rate is unbelievable, their ability to deal with the pressures that comes with individual sport is unrivalled and the heat, well, Australia gets much hotter than SW19. This was going to be a battle of epic proportions.
It looked like it was going to be a dream start for the man from Dunblane as he found himself 0-40 with a break point against the number one's serve in the first game of the match. However, Djokovic is a world class player and he was not going to be chasing the match from the first game and he made his way back and held his serve. This set the pattern of the game. It would be a cat v mouse, tit for tat sort of game with both players being able to turn defence in to attack with ease.
Despite sweltering heat both players took part in some Herculean rallies, with many of them reaching 26 or even 30 strokes. With both players' cylinders firing at full power, Murray's lead of 2-1 (with serve) after a break in the third game, was not going to last long. As expected, Djokovic broke back in the next game to make it all square once more. Physicality was going to play a big part in this game as the world numbers 1 & 2 left every ounce of energy they had on the court.
Djokovic, unusually, missed a mid court ball on the back hand side in the seventh game to give Murray a break and a 4-3 lead. With the games averaging 5 minutes & 11 seconds, as Murray served out the set, both his and his opposition's shirts were dripping with sweat. Being one set to love up was never going to fill Murray with hope because since beating Djokovic in the US Open, Murray has lost to him in every game after being ahead one set to love. The Scot needed to keep his concentration and determination going in to the second set.
It did not start well for the British number one - after a 30 stroke rally, Djokovic found himself 3-1 up after breaking Murray's serve. With the board reading 4-1 the atmosphere around Centre Court began to fill with anxiety as Djokovic managed to change the momentum to his favour. Although, this new found momentum did not manage to banish the Serbian's nerves and with the threat of a break point he served a double fault to bring Murray right back in to the match. This proved costly for the Serb as Murray went on to with the second set 5-7, coming back from 4-1.
Determination and concentration was almost bursting out of the Scot as he broke Djokovic in the first game of the third set. However, as the story of this Wimbledon final had been all afternoon, Djokovic and Murray were like two boxers trading blows with Djokovic soon breaking back to make things all square once more in the All England Club. Murray found his serve under increased pressure during the third set and a spectacular forehand down the left sideline allowed him a crucial hold of serve.
The reaction on Hollywood actor, and fellow Scot, Gerard Butler as Murray broke Djokovic to make it 4-5* said more than any amount of words could. A picture of disbelief. The crowd's roar could have been heard on the other side of London and even coach Ivan Lendl, who Murray later dedicated the win to, gave an unusual clap of appreciation. Murray now had only to serve out the game and he would be crowned Wimbledon Champion and being 40-0 up it seemed that he would do it in style. However, one should never underestimate the talent of world number one, Novak Djokovic, and within a few minutes the Serbian had a break point and a chance to possibly take the game in to a fourth set. Murray had to play "some of the hardest points" he had ever played during the last few minutes of battle. It had taken 77 years to get to this point, nobody said it was going to be easy to close out the game. With a powerful serve and an unforced error by Djokovic, Murray's racket fell to the floor as he screamed with relief to the crowd. Andy Murray - Wimbledon champion, 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.
As Doug Dickson carried the players' bags out on to centre court for the last time after 42 years of service, the day was already shaping up to be one to remember. Murray was walking out to play a Wimbledon final match for only the second time in his life, Djokovic on the other hand had been here, done that and got the trophy after beating Nadal back in 2011. The 15,000 that filled centre court and the thousands more that perched, or more like squished, themselves on to Henman Hill, were ready to see the Scot end the 77 year wait for a British Wimbledon champion.
Numerous questions were asked of both players before they struck the first ball. Would Djokovic be suffering after a marathon 5 hour semi-final against Del Potro? Was the pressure of expectation going to be too much for Murray? With the court side temperature at 40 degrees the biggest question was, how will they cope with the heat? However, Djokovic and Murray are the best tennis players in the world and have trained to the highest standard. Their recovery rate is unbelievable, their ability to deal with the pressures that comes with individual sport is unrivalled and the heat, well, Australia gets much hotter than SW19. This was going to be a battle of epic proportions.
It looked like it was going to be a dream start for the man from Dunblane as he found himself 0-40 with a break point against the number one's serve in the first game of the match. However, Djokovic is a world class player and he was not going to be chasing the match from the first game and he made his way back and held his serve. This set the pattern of the game. It would be a cat v mouse, tit for tat sort of game with both players being able to turn defence in to attack with ease.
Despite sweltering heat both players took part in some Herculean rallies, with many of them reaching 26 or even 30 strokes. With both players' cylinders firing at full power, Murray's lead of 2-1 (with serve) after a break in the third game, was not going to last long. As expected, Djokovic broke back in the next game to make it all square once more. Physicality was going to play a big part in this game as the world numbers 1 & 2 left every ounce of energy they had on the court.
Djokovic, unusually, missed a mid court ball on the back hand side in the seventh game to give Murray a break and a 4-3 lead. With the games averaging 5 minutes & 11 seconds, as Murray served out the set, both his and his opposition's shirts were dripping with sweat. Being one set to love up was never going to fill Murray with hope because since beating Djokovic in the US Open, Murray has lost to him in every game after being ahead one set to love. The Scot needed to keep his concentration and determination going in to the second set.
It did not start well for the British number one - after a 30 stroke rally, Djokovic found himself 3-1 up after breaking Murray's serve. With the board reading 4-1 the atmosphere around Centre Court began to fill with anxiety as Djokovic managed to change the momentum to his favour. Although, this new found momentum did not manage to banish the Serbian's nerves and with the threat of a break point he served a double fault to bring Murray right back in to the match. This proved costly for the Serb as Murray went on to with the second set 5-7, coming back from 4-1.
Determination and concentration was almost bursting out of the Scot as he broke Djokovic in the first game of the third set. However, as the story of this Wimbledon final had been all afternoon, Djokovic and Murray were like two boxers trading blows with Djokovic soon breaking back to make things all square once more in the All England Club. Murray found his serve under increased pressure during the third set and a spectacular forehand down the left sideline allowed him a crucial hold of serve.
The reaction on Hollywood actor, and fellow Scot, Gerard Butler as Murray broke Djokovic to make it 4-5* said more than any amount of words could. A picture of disbelief. The crowd's roar could have been heard on the other side of London and even coach Ivan Lendl, who Murray later dedicated the win to, gave an unusual clap of appreciation. Murray now had only to serve out the game and he would be crowned Wimbledon Champion and being 40-0 up it seemed that he would do it in style. However, one should never underestimate the talent of world number one, Novak Djokovic, and within a few minutes the Serbian had a break point and a chance to possibly take the game in to a fourth set. Murray had to play "some of the hardest points" he had ever played during the last few minutes of battle. It had taken 77 years to get to this point, nobody said it was going to be easy to close out the game. With a powerful serve and an unforced error by Djokovic, Murray's racket fell to the floor as he screamed with relief to the crowd. Andy Murray - Wimbledon champion, 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.
Djokovic did not seem to be able to break Murray's rhythm with conviction throughout the match and when he spoke after the presentation he said "I threw everything at him [Murray], but it still wasn't good enough". The Serban looked unusually frustrated and uncomfortable on court as, multiple times, he began to shout at the umpire, Mohamed Lehyani, and his lips and throat were trembling with frustration. Murray did play the best tennis of his life, completing some of the most astonishing points ever seen in a Wimbledon final. Neither has a Wimbledon final seen as much physicality in all three sets. The two men who are only a week apart in age left everything out on the court as they played some remarkable tennis, fast pace and with enormous power that was remarkable to witness. The fatigue that both players felt could be seen on their faces during that last draining game, Murray wincing every time he had to go to the baseline and serve and Djokovic's chest fluttered vigorously as he tried to run around the court to save match points.
With Scotland's First Minister, Alex Salmond, waving the St. Andrew's cross behind British Prime Minister, David Cameron, in a sort of celebratory political statement, Andy Murray modestly said to the crowd "I just managed to squeeze it [the win] in at the end and I hope you guys enjoyed it" to the reaction of laughter and cheers throughout the court, Henman Hill and all around the All England Club as the newly crowned Wimbledon Champion held his trophy atop his head to the euphoria of thousands that stood under the members terrace.
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