A nation holds its breath.
After a night of high drama and high quality on Centre Court, Andy Murray stands within touching distance of adding another unforgettable chapter to his Wimbledon story, the former world No 1 having taken a two sets to one lead over Stefanos Tsitsipas, the Greek fifth seed. With play halted 21 minutes before the tournament’s 11pm curfew, Murray will return to the All England Club on Friday afternoon in an attempt to finish the job.
What no one outside his immediate circle can know, however, is how the two-time champion will pull up after crumpling to the turf with a gut-wrenching shriek on the penultimate point of the night.
A collective intake of breath resounded around Centre Court as Murray rolled on the grass, clutching at the left-hand side of his groin, before gingerly clambering to his feet. Then, as the realisation dawned that the 36-year-old’s evening was not at an end, gasps gave way to cheers. The umpire, Aurelie Tourte, who was quickly on the scene to check on the stricken Scot, handed Murray his racket and returned to her chair. Another concerned onlooker, Gerry Armstrong, the tournament supervisor, disappeared behind the backstop.
Murray stepped up to the line, threw down a 111mph serve and, as Tsitsipas’s return sailed long, cementing a 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 lead for the Scot, he bounced up and down on the spot, a 36-year-old with a sore groin and a metal hip but a spirit of steel.
“Let’s go!” Murray cried, as his mother, Judy, gently shook her head in disbelief. “Let’s go!”
To Murray’s evident displeasure, club officials took that remark all too literally. Gone they soon were, proceedings halted with 21 minutes of play still possible.
“Why?” demanded Murray, although the answer was obvious. It had taken two hours and 52 minutes to complete the first three sets. Clearly there was little prospect of a repeat of 2012, when, on another electrifying night on Centre Court, Murray stormed through a 28-minute fourth set to complete a nail-biting four-set win over Marcos Baghdatis a couple of minutes after the curfew.
What is it about Murray and late finishes? Earlier this year, the former world No 1 fought back from two sets to love down to defeat Thanasi Kokkinakis in an Australian Open epic that lasted nearly six hours and ended after 4am. Happily for Murray’s prospects of making the deep run at Wimbledon that he so craves, there was never any chance of a repeat of that scenario here.
No one could say Murray’s gladiatorial spirit has not rubbed off on his compatriots. Had it not been for the heroic exploits of fellow Brit Liam Broady, who earlier scored a major upset with a 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory over Casper Ruud, the fourth seed, Murray might have arrived on Centre Court in plenty of time to finish. Instead, it was approaching 8pm by the time the match began. Given the former champion’s track record of long battles, a late night was almost inevitable, a fact reflected in the decision to start with the roof closed.
Tsitsipas, whose most notable title came indoors at the ATP Finals four years ago, was not about to complain about that. If Murray hoped the Greek might be feeling the after-effects of the previous day’s five-set battle with Dominic Thiem, he was quickly disappointed.
Crushing big serves and thunderous forehands, Tsitsipas began like a runaway train, the thud of the ball off his strings amplified under the closed roof. It was hard to believe that this was the same man who had claimed only one victory from four grass-court matches in the build-up to Wimbledon. Yet Tsitsipas, who declared himself “empty” after his victory over Thiem, seemed energised by the occasion and the atmosphere. Murray, meanwhile, made a relatively slow start on serve, struggling to land his first delivery as he recovered from 0-30 down.
From there, however, neither man gave an inch until Murray, serving to stay in the set at 5-6, suffered a sudden brain freeze at deuce, stopping mid-point to challenge a Tsitsipas return. A Hawk-Eye replay showed the ball had clipped the back edge of the line; out of nowhere, the Greek had a set point. Murray fended off the danger with a brave crosscourt forehand, prising a miss from Tsitsipas, but the world No 5 made no such mistake in the ensuing tiebreak, defending brilliantly before landing a sizzling forehand winner to claim what proved a decisive mini-break.
The second set continued in similar vein. Despite some brilliant returning from Murray at 5-5, neither player was able to fashion a single break point, necessitating a second tiebreak. Murray seized the early initiative with a vintage backhand, catching his opponent cold with a sudden injection of pace before consolidating the advantage with some brilliant serving. As he moved ahead 4-1, his wife, Kim, rose to her feet, yelling encouragement. A fine return quickly secured a second mini-break. As Murray served out to level the contest, Centre Court erupted.
Further joy was to come at the start of the third set as Murray claimed the first break of the night, forcing crucial errors from Tsitsipas with a superb pass and a skidding sliced backhand that barely reached shoelace-level. Murray, alive to the significance of the moment, turned to his box and gave a lingering shake of the first. By the time the Scot held for 2-0, he had won 13 of the previous 15 points. The tide had turned.
Tsitsipas fashioned two break points in the fourth game, but Murray was again equal to the moment, blasting an ace that had Kim and Judy out of their seats once more, then drawing an error at the end of a cat-and-mouse rally.
With that nine-minute battle lost, Tsitsipas began to show signs of frustration, most notably when he bizarrely allowed a mid-court ball to drop to ankle level before cutting across the ball with an ungainly swipe. “That’s indescribable,” said John McEnroe, commentating for the BBC, as the ball bounced before reaching the net.
In the circumstances, the curtailment of the match probably did Tsitsipas a huge favour. Yet the same could be said for Murray, given the uncertainty surrounding his physical state after that late tumble. With the outcome in the balance, play will resume after 3pm on Friday.