He only went and did it again. Leading by a set and a break against German qualifier Oscar Otte, Andy Murray looked set fair for a routine win at Wimbledon. But nothing is ever routine where Murray is concerned and, just as he did against Nikoloz Basilashvili in the opening round on Monday, the Scot was forced to climb a mountain largely of his own making, clawing his way back from two sets to one down on a night of passion, drama and febrile excitement on Centre Court.
By the latter stages, it was vintage Murray. He scrambled to retrieve an angled volley, steering it down the line for a winner to cap an epic service hold for 5-2. He skipped to his chair, punching the air in joy, feeding off the energy of the crowd. Up in the stands, his wife Kim Sears barely knew whether to shake her head in disbelief or grin in delight, and so did both at once. Murray’s coach, Jamie Delgado, looked gobsmacked. And that was before he saw the brilliant topspin lob that carried Murray to within two points of the match. This is what Murray does to you. He thrills. He confounds. He frustrates and inspires.
When the Scot flicked another topspin lob beyond Otte to finally seal the match 6-3, 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 after three hours and 51 minutes, the emotions ran thick and fast. First a smile broke across Murray’s features, then quivering emotion as he saluted the crowd. In the stands, there was delirium. The Scot’s liberal distribution of mementoes – sweat bands, a shirt, even a Wimbledon umbrella – only increased the hysteria. Murray, a double champion at the All England Club, has enjoyed greater triumphs on Centre Court. But never with a metal hip. These are the moments he came back for, the reason he kept working, kept believing even when the pain was so bad that he couldn’t tie his shoelaces.
There was little indication of the drama to come when Murray led by a set and 3-1. Otte, ranked 151, stands 6ft 4in and has a booming serve. What he does not have is Murray’s court craft and experience, a fact of which the Scot took full advantage as he neutralised Otte’s serve with deep, solid returns and used his slice to keep the ball around the lofty German’s ankles.
Then Murray went walkabout and everything changed. With Murray’s error count creeping up alarmingly and Otte clambering all over his second serve, the former champion lost four games in a row. The momentum remained with Otte in the third set, and when Murray took a heavy tumble at the start of the fourth, grabbing his groin in pain, hearts were in mouths. By then, however, the light was fading and the decision was taken to shut the roof. A 17-minute delay ensued, and it proved crucial for Murray, allowing him time to regroup, just as he had done after losing the third set against Basilashvili. He returned with a renewed sense of purpose.
“I hit some great shots to finish it, but it was a tough match,” said Murray afterwards. “I had to do something differently. I started going for my shots more, started dictating the points more. I was being a little bit negative [before]. Because of the lack of matches, at the important moments I didn’t make the right decisions a lot of the time. But I think I played the right way the last couple of sets. And the first set and a half was really good. There’s just bits in the middle I would like to change.”
After spending seven hours and 23 mins on court in the opening two rounds, it doesn’t get any easier for Murray, who will face Denis Shapovalov, the 10th seed, on Friday. The Canadian, 12 years Murray’s junior, received a walkover into round three after his opponent, Spain’s Pablo Andujar, pulled out with a rib injury.