Rio de Janeiro: Andy Murray became the first player to win two Olympic tennis singles gold medals on Sunday when he defeated Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 in an epic final.
Murray added the Rio title to his 2012 triumph and to his Grand Slam collection of the 2012 US Open and 2013 and 2016 Wimbledon crowns. It also stretched the 29-year-old’s current winning streak to a career best 18.
The final will go down as one of the best in the Olympics, lasting over four hours and ending with both men embracing at the net. Del Potro, a bronze medallist in London four years ago, was inconsolable, weeping as he sat courtside.
“Today was a very up and down match, very stressful. Both of us had a lot of chances and, it was a long and tiring match. I’m just glad I managed to get through it,” said Murray.
“I had a lot of difficult losses over the last couple of years. I lost quite a few Grand Slam finals. I managed to obviously win a couple of big events and that meant a lot to me,” he added.
Murray also hailed 2009 US Open champion del Potro who has fought his way back from three wrist surgeries which threatened his career. “What he’s had to go through over the last three years or so with his wrists — I can’t imagine how mentally difficult that would have been,” said the Briton.
“To get himself back to playing at this level, fighting for the biggest events and competing against the best players in the world is an amazing credit to him,” Murray added.
The final was decided in a dramatic fourth set where del Potro was ahead twice with breaks to go 2-1 and 4-3 ahead. But each time he faltered and Murray pounced. The Briton saved two break points for a 6-5 lead before he sealed the win.
