Andy Murray has sealed one of his best comeback wins and it was in doubles as he took down the team of Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori with Dan Evans for Great Britain having trained 4-2 in the second set. But they claimed it 4-9 in the deciding tie-break.
Murray hailed it as one of the best wins of his illustrious career as he also opened up about the thinking surrounding his retirement at the Olympic Games over Wimbledon.
“It’s probably up there,” said Murray of his magic as per PA. “Also probably the way that we were playing to that stage would have not suggested that we were likely to come back.
“I certainly from my side didn’t feel like I was playing well. Evo played well at times but for both of us we can play much better than that and then it all clicked at the end and we played some pretty good stuff.
“In my career I’ve turned round a lot of matches that maybe I looked unlikely to win, or maybe people thought I shouldn’t have won. At times that mental toughness, certainly earlier in my career, was questioned. I’m really proud of that side of things.
“I’ve come back from two sets to love down more than anyone in the sport before and I’ve also tried my best to fight and figure out ways to come through. I certainly couldn’t have done that on my own today. We’re out there as a team and Evo certainly played a huge part in that.”
But while he was feeling his injury during the match, he opened up on the thought process surrounding his retirement and why he didn't call time at SW19 last month.
“I didn’t really feel that bad going into the match,” he said. “I felt fine today. I was a little bit nervous but I like that. But then, when the match started, I was not playing well, not feeling great, didn’t serve well.
“I was feeling it a bit during the match but, at the end, I wasn’t standing to serve thinking ‘Oh my God this is about to be over, what am I going to do? I was really clear about where I wanted to return and where I wanted to serve.”
“I wanted this to be my final tournament, not Wimbledon,” he said. “I love being part of this. It’s so different to what we usually experience. Davis Cup is similar in some ways but it’s on a much smaller scale.
“We’re cycling around the village and just being part of it and, when I’m doing that, and sometimes just walking through the village, I’m like, ‘This is what I’m going to miss’. I’m going to miss being part of these tournaments and these events and it’s really special being here.”
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Wow.
Andy Murray and Dan Evans comeback from 4-9 (!!!!) in the deciding match tiebreak to beat Nishikori/Daniel 2-6, 7-6(5), 11-9 and reach the second round in #Paris2024.
What an atmosphere.
Long moment at the net between Andy and Kei (after this video)