By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, January 19, 2023
Andy Murray staged his second straight five-set stand conquering Australian Open doubles cham Thanasi Kokkinakis 4-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, 7-5 in an epic 5 hour, 45 minute win.
Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty
The Yarra River is not the fountain of youth.
A revitalized Andy Murray continues to turn back time in Melbourne marathons.
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Facing a dire two-set deficit, Murray roared back to deliver a comeback for the ages on Margaret Court Arena.
Showing fierce appetite for the fight, Murray staged his second straight five-set stand conquering Australian Open doubles champion Thanasi Kokkinakis 4-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, 7-5 in an epic five hour, 45 minute victory.
Age can't diminish Murray's devotion to the game. The 35-year-old Murray delivered triumph in what was the longest match of his storied career.
In the aftermath, a buzzed and weary Murray was craving only one thing: Sleep.
"The match was obviously very up and down. There was frustration in there," Murray said. "There was tension. There was excitement, all of that stuff.
"Then at the end, yeah, I mean, look, it's obviously amazing to win the match, but I also want to go to bed now. It's great, great. But I want to sleep."
Five-time AO finalist Murray has drank deep disappointment in Melbourne.
On this night, Murray poured every piece of emotion and energy into a match that had fans on their feet as if they were witnessing a prize fight. Facing an opponent nine years his junior, the 35-year-old Murray looked like a man loving every minute of this skirmish and reveling in the pro-Aussie crowd response too.
Two-time Olympic gold-medal champion Murray reinforced his reputation as a true tennis warrior fighting off five break points against Kokkinakis in a crackling fourth set.
The 35-year-old Scot smacked an ace to fire up the internal furnace and sent the crowd into a frenzy forcing a fifth set.
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Afterward, Murray said it was all about fight and heart.
"It was unbelievable that I managed to turn that round," Murray said. "Thanasi was playing, I mean, serving unbelievable, hitting his forehand huge and I don't know how I managed to get through it.
"I did start playing better as the match went on. And yeah, I have a big heart."
The man who fought off Matteo Berrettini in a five-set thriller in round one, was energized by his experience in prior comebacks.
"I think now I'm outright the most matches coming back from two sets to love down," Murray said. "So I have done it before, I have experience of it, and I just rely on that experience and that drive and that fight, and my love of the game, and competing, and my respect for this event, and the competition.
"That's why I kept going."
That drive has carried Murray into the third round for the first time since 2017. World No. 66 Murray will face familiar nemesis Roberto Bautista Agut for a place in the round of 16.
Bautista Agut staged his own comeback from two sets down defeating American qualifier Brandon Holt 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in two hours, 56 minutes.
World No. 25 Bautista Agut and Murray have split six career meetings. The slender Spaniard edged Murray 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-7(4), 6-2 in a classic 2019 AO first rounder.
Prior to that 2019 match, Murray announced he was retiring due to severe hip pain. Murray subsequently underwent hip resurfacing surgery and made his comeback. Now comes a rivalry reunion with Bautista Agut in what will be the 954th match of Murray's career.
This Melbourne run is a microcosm of Murray's never-say-die career. And while he may have lost a half-step of speed he's reminded us all again he can go the distance and has a fierce closing kick.