Andy Murray reached the “pinnacle of tennis” and became the first British man to be Wimbledon Champion in 77 years. After a brutal 3 hour and 10 minute match in blistering heat Murray finally won in straight sets 6-4 7-5 6-4 against his old (on-court) nemesis Novak Djokovic. It was the hottest day of the year and the temperatures reach 40C (104F) in the sun on Centre Court.
Murray, 26, received a standing ovation last night on Centre Court. He then broke down in tears of joy. Murray is now the first British man to take the Wimbledon title since Fred Perry in 1936, Many now think he is a shoo in for a Knighthood and also BBC Sport Personality of the Year.
After his win he kept up a Wimbledon tradition, sprinting towards the players’ box where he hugged members of “Team Murray” including girlfriend Kim, 25. He did, however, initially forgot to hug his mother, coming back to embrace her after hearing her ‘squealing’.
Murray later said the success would “take a little while to sink in. I don’t really know what to say just now. Winning Wimbledon I think is the pinnacle of tennis,”
“The last game almost increased that feeling… I worked so hard in that last game. It’s the hardest few points I’ve had to play in my life… I still can’t believe it.
“Can’t get my head around that. I can’t believe it.”
Murray had previously said that the weight of public expectation made his life “very difficult”. But he thanked the crowd for their support.
“It was different to last year’s final, for sure, and then (at) the end of the match, that was incredibly loud, very noisy. I’ve been saying it all week, but it does make a difference. It really helps when the crowd’s like that, the atmosphere is like that. Especially in a match as tough as that one, where it’s extremely hot, brutal, long rallies, tough games, they help you get through it.”
“I understand how much everyone else wanted to see a British winner at Wimbledon so I hope you guys enjoyed it, I did my best,”
Prime Minister David Cameron and Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond watched the historic sport event from the Royal Box. Gerald Butler, Bradley Cooper, Victoria Beckham also watched Andy win.
Although Murray is the first man to win since Fred Perry, four women won it in that time and have largely been written out of history. Including Virgina Wade. The Guardian Said, “Yep. Partially deaf player Angela Mortimer won the championship in 1961, and underdog Ann Haydon-Jones beat legend of the sport Billie Jean King to win again in 1969.” Writer Chloe Angyal, tweeted “Murray is indeed the first Brit to win Wimbledon in 77 years unless you think women are people” It has been re-tweeted over 9,425 times.