ANDY MURRAY OUTLASTS DEL POTRO TO WIN TENNIS GOLD IN RIO, KEI NISHIKORI BEATS RAFAEL NADAL FOR THE BRONZE

Written by: Staff on 14th August 2016

ANDY MURRAY OUTLASTS DEL POTRO TO WIN TENNIS GOLD IN RIO, KEI NISHIKORI BEATS RAFAEL NADAL FOR THE BRONZE

epa05485750 Gold medal winner Andy Murray of Great Britain celebrates after the awarding ceremony of men's singles gold medal match of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Tennis events at the Olympic Tennis Centre in the Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 14 August 2016. EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS |

By Ricky Dimon

Juan Martin Del Potro did not have quite enough left in the tank to turn his guaranteed medal from silver to gold. But he had enough to deliver one last memorable performance at the Rio Olympics. Andy Murray, of course, played just as big a role.

In a thrilling gold-medal match at the Rio Olympics on Sunday, Murray outlasted Del Potro 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 after four hours and two minutes.

“I know tonight’s one of the hardest matches that I’ve had to play for a big, big title,” Murray said. “Emotionally it was tough. Physically it was hard. There were so many ups and downs in the match. It was one of the toughest matches that I’ve played to win a big event.”

And winning big events is nothing new for the second-ranked Scot. In fact, this is his second Olympic gold in men’s singles–and second in a row–to go along with a trio of Grand Slam titles.

Silver medal winner Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina celebrates after the awarding ceremony of men’s singles gold medal match of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Tennis events at the Olympic Tennis Centre in the Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 14 August 2016. EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS

This one almost didn’t happen. After storming back from breaks down in final sets against both Fabio Fognini and Steve Johnson earlier in the tournament, Murray encountered an unexpectedly stern test from a worn-out Del Potro. The 27-year-old Argentine had already survived several grueling contests, including against Novak Djokovic in round one and Rafael Nadal in a semifinal that lasted more than three hours. But Del Potro, who won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics, came tantalizingly close to snatching the gold.

He even led 5-3 in the fourth and served at 5-4 to force a fifth but could not get over the hump. Murray broke for 5-5 and struck again in the 12th game to wrap up another gold.

“This will be for the rest of my life on my mind,” Del Potro assured. “I never thought something like that at the beginning of the tournament. It’s even bigger–like a dream. Now I got a silver medal, which means [as much as] a gold for me. I cannot believe I will bring another medal back to my country.”

It was a big day for Japan, too, as its best player ever managed to secure the bronze. Kei Nishikori held off Nadal 6-2, 6-7(1), 6-3.

Not unlike the gold-medal showdown, this one seemed to have the possible makings of one-way traffic. Nadal, after all, had already played five doubles matches (won gold with Marc Lopez) to go along with his five singles efforts–the most recent of which was the energy-sapper against Del Potro. The Spaniard looked down and out when he trailed Nishikori by a set and two breaks at 6-2, 5-2, but he stormed back to steal the second in a tiebreaker. In the end, though, Nishikori needed only one break to take the third.

“I’m very happy to win, to get a medal today, even though (it’s for) third place,” Nishikori commented. “It means a lot for me to especially beat Rafa. I knew before playing the Olympics that if I can play good tennis–good, solid tennis–I’d have a chance to get a medal.”

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Andy Murray, Fabio Fognini, Juan Martin Del Potro, Kei Nishikori, Novak Djokovic, Olympic tennis, Rafa Nadal, Ricky Dimon, Rio 2016, Rio De Janeiro, Rio Olympics, Sports, Stevie Johnson, Tennis News

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10sBalls_com says:

August 14, 2016 at 10:04 pm

RT @10sBalls_com: Murray Outlasts Del Potro To Win #Tennis Gold In Rio, Nishikori Beats Rafa For The Bronze
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