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Murray Wins Gold Medal, Defends Olympic Title

Aug 14th 2016

Andy Murray defended his 2012 Olympic gold medal by defeating Juan Martin Del Potro, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, on Sunday. With the win, Murray became the first player to win back-to-back Olympic singles gold medals, and he ended an impressive run by the Argentine who defeated both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal on the way to a silver medal.

In a battle that lasted more than four hours, the Brit overcame a spirited effort by Del Potro who appeared weary for much of the match, yet poured every last drop of energy into it. Employing defensive tactics, Murray had some success blunting Del Potro’s powerful forehand and he played his weaker backhand frequently, forcing him to engage in long rallies which eventually took its toll.  His strong return of serve minimized the towering Argentine’s big serve for much of the day.

Andy Murray

After losing the first set, Del Potro was able to protect his serve in the second set and found the one break of service he would need to even the match. But Murray began to turn the play in his favor in the third set as signs of fatigue began to show in his opponent’s game.

But Del Potro would not go down without a fight and after gaining a break of serve in the fourth set, he attempted to even the match again, serving at 5-4. But Murray fought back and on the fourth break point of the game, he evened the set.  In the next Del Potro service game, the Scot broke again, sealing the match and the gold medal.

Displaying mutual respect, the two teary-eyed competitors embraced for several moments at the net after a Del Potro ground stroke missed its mark, ending the epic final.

“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.

Andy Murray and Juan Martin Del Potro

The 29-year old prevailed despite a predominate Del Potro crowd who proudly displayed the blue and white colors of the Argentina flag. With the win, Murray stretched his winning streak to 18. Since April, he has won the Rome Masters, the Aegon Championships in London, Wimbledon and now the Olympics.

The champion had positive words for Del Potro afterward, “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, how frustrating that would have been for him,” he stated. “To get himself back to playing at this level, fighting for the biggest events and competing against the greatest players in the world is an amazing credit to him. He should be very proud of his efforts.”

The world no. 2 will have very little time to savor his result since he is scheduled to compete in the Cincinnati Masters on Wednesday. “This one means a lot but I won't get the chance to enjoy it as much as I'm playing a match in 48 hours,” he said.

Andy Murray

Del Potro will now turn to the U. S. Open in a couple of weeks where he hopes to receive a wild-card entry. And while those are generally reserved for Americans, it is difficult to imagine that he would not receive one.

Elsewhere, Kei Nishikori won the bronze medal in men’s singles as he defeated Rafael Nadal on Sunday. Other gold medal winners include Americans Jack Sock and Bethanie Mattek-Sands who defeated Venus Williams and Rajeev Ram in mixed doubles. Elena Vesnina and Ekaterina Makarova overcame Martina Hingis and Timea Bacsinszky for the women’s doubles gold medal.

Sunday concluded the tennis competition from the Rio Olympics. They will next be held in Tokyo in four years.