And the stage was set! NYC, Arthur Ashe Stadium, under the lights, with history against him along with arguably the best hard court player in the world on the other side, but Andy Murray was not to be denied. Not this time! He finally came away with his long awaited, much coveted Grand Slam title. The Scot, at last, has his!
Let alone the history (last Brit to win a Grand Slam title was Fred Perry in '36) and the pressure of an entire kingdom, the actual match was epic! A 4 hour 54 minute affair saw Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic stretched out to their limits and us, the fans, stretched to ours. From the first ball hit, the windy conditions added drama to the battle. Breaks of serve were the norm while holding serve was a rarity. The fist set alone was 1 hour 28 minutes which ended in 12-10 in the tiebreaker. The question of Del Potro's/Djokovic 2nd set as one of the greatest of all times at the Open might have to take a back seat to this one. The first set set the tone for the rest of the match.
Going into the second set, Andy came away firing and Djoko looked deflated. A 4-0 lead for the Scot quickly build up, but it was erased almost as fast. Next thing we knew, the men were tied at 5-5 certain for another breaker. After two well played games from Murray and points with rallies over 20 & 30 shots, Murray takes the set 7-5. HISTORY IS ON ITS WAY!
Not yet! Djokovic might be the most clutch player in history (ask Roger about that). He claws and fights back to take the next two sets. Setting up the most important set in British history since most of us can remember. Going into the Grand Slam finals, Andy Murray was 0-4 with some bad loses. After winning the first two sets and then losing the next two, I'm sure not many people saw Andy having a chance. So much history against him, so many malevolent memories of his finals, so much pressure! Little did we know that this was Andy's time! While one Andy retired, it was time for the other to "step up" and take that major he so desperately wanted. Playing a brilliant set against the force that is Djokovic, Murray saw Djoko's forehand go long giving him the final set 6-2 and the US Open.
Andy Murray's dream came true and we saw the astonished manner on the court. Instead of jumping, going to the ground, or any of the other celebrations we have seen from players in the past, Andy looked lost. All the pressure lifted off his shoulders. The pain, anguish, and frustration of being so close and coming up empty handed. The questions from the press, friends, family asking him when he would win that major. All those terrible memories all banished from his head for that moment. Finally, he was at peace. He wasn't really astonished, but rather relived!
"Relief is probably the best word I would use to describe how I'm feeling just now,'' Murray said. "You're in a little bit of disbelief, because when I have been in that position many times before and not won, you do think: Is it ever going to happen?''
Congratulations to Andy Murray and a whole kingdom waiting a long time for this! Enjoy it!
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