Last week, Andy Murray confided in a few of us that he was prepared for the end of his career. Along with his impressive array of sporting accomplishments, we can now assert that he is an exceptional fabricator of reality.
Right up to the very end, he continues to demonstrate just how unprepared he really is. He remains relentless, battling through each moment that elicits gasps and exclamations of: ‘Andy bloody Murray.’
Out of the approximately 1,000 matches he has competed in, and across the numerous remarkable comebacks throughout his 19-year journey leading to this concluding week, only a few rival the extraordinary performance he displayed alongside Dan Evans on the Suzanne-Lenglen court last Sunday evening.
Their Olympic doubles match against Kei Nishikori and Taro Daniel initially appeared to be heading towards a disheartening and lackluster conclusion during the first hour.
We can pinpoint numerous moments in their first-round clash to characterize how it looked — especially when they faced five match points in the final set — but let’s organize it in a coherent manner.
Andy Murray and Dan Evans (right) secured a stunning win over Kei Nishikori and Taro Daniel
Murray’s latest act of resurrection is matched only by a handful of other miracles in his career
The opening set was a complete disaster – they were defeated 6-2. Murray’s serve was broken for the third time in the first game of the second set, witnessed by a sparsely populated stadium. It felt bleak. A mere whisper. Not the way someone should go out at 37 years and five weeks post-back surgery.
Yet, against all odds, these two wounded warriors managed to rebound in the second set, even overcoming another break deficit. Thanks to some impressive efforts from Evans, they fought their way into a tiebreak and surprisingly emerged victorious.
That turn of events was astonishing. However, what followed was beyond anything we could have anticipated, taking the form of a race-to-10 point showdown known as a Match Tiebreak, which provided us with thrilling chaos.
The situation was dire as they trailed 9-4, facing five match points. They seemed done for, and inevitably when Murray plays his final shot during this last hurrah, his family might consider burying his racket.
In a steel coffin and buried beneath a mile of concrete. To do anything else would only risk enduring this tumult once more.
Returning to those match points, despite serving poorly throughout the evening, Murray delivered an ace. With a renewed sense of determination, he then fired a service winner, capitalizing on a window of opportunity when Nishikori committed a double fault. Suddenly, it was 9-7. Really?
Murray and Evans faced five match points before a stunning recovery to win on Sunday night
After some incredible retrievals from Evans, the score now stood at 9-8, and a brilliant volley from him tied the match. With Evans then holding his serve, they were at 10-9, match point.
‘Let’s go GB, let’s go,’ the few spectators cheered, and Murray responded by launching himself at a Daniel serve, sending an unreturnable forehand that came with enough force to leave an imprint in the air. He squeezed Evans in a hug so tight that he could have easily harmed the small man.
‘Throughout my career, I have turned around many matches that people thought I shouldn’t win,’ Murray remarked. ‘I have always endeavored to fight hard and achieve victory. I couldn’t have done it alone today.’
A brief note about Evans: in many aspects, he was the more formidable partner, yet he is aware that this will be recognized as Murray’s narrative. He has openly stated his focus on doubles over singles, which was evident from his position on the court, particularly given he could have withdrawn.
The drama was compounded by the fact that he had injured his wrist and knee earlier in the day while narrowly defeating Tunisia’s Moez Echargui in three sets. Had he opted for a different course, it would have added to a day marked by Katie Boulter’s loss in women’s singles, Cam Norrie’s withdrawal due to injury, and Jack Draper’s victory over Nishikori.
Evans (left) was the stronger partner, but he also knows this will be seen as Murray’s story
However, Evans opted not to take additional recovery time. ‘I didn’t want to be the one to pull out on him,’ he explained, evoking thoughts of Emma Raducanu and Murray’s shortened goodbye at Wimbledon weeks earlier.
Thus, Evans pushed through the pain to compete in this match. For a significant stretch, it looked like it wouldn’t matter. Even Murray’s mother, Judy, was mentally assessing which flight she would take back home, stating, ‘But you never write him off.’
And indeed, you can’t. At some point this week, we’ll witness it again, possibly in their next match on Tuesday against the Belgian duo of Sander Gillé and Joran Vliegen or the French pair of Arthur Fils and Ugo Humbert. We can document it and announce it.
Yet, until his racket is tucked away in that coffin and buried beneath concrete, he won’t heed any farewell. What a magnificently stubborn individual he is.
