Puig had done her best to memorize the island’s anthem after her father emailed her the lyrics, but as that song played during a medal ceremony for the first time, she couldn’t get out the words.
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The Japanese star won just five points off the Murray serve in the opener and seven in the second when he was broken again in the sixth game. The 2009 U.S. Open champion then needed three sets to get past Joao Sousa and Taro Daniel.
Certainly, tennis doesn’t have the Olympics history that other sports have, but after a lengthy hiatus, it made its return as a full medal event in 1988.
“At the time, it was the first time I had ever won any major event and it was a home Olympics”. That is until now.
True, Murray had a long history of falling short on the grand stage.
They were each on court for the fourth straight day, because rain washed out play Wednesday, leading organizers to eliminate the 24 hours of rest between the semifinals and final.
But he wasn’t about to refuse a second invitation and when del Potro hit his shot into the net, Murray looked to the sky in disbelief. But don’t discount the motivation Murray has when it comes to playing for his country.
“I will be 33 in four years time, I don’t know if I will still be playing at the same level then”. Last season, he led his British team to its first Davis Cup championship since 1936.
Victory for Murray would be yet another gold for Great Britain on a night where they could conceivably jump above China to second in the medals table.
The 6-foot-6 Argentine has experienced setbacks no top-tier tennis player should endure.
“It’s not easy, that’s why it’s never been done before, but I will go out there and give it my best”, said the 29-year-old world number two. Since then, del Potro has spent most of his time either sidelined or toiling on the comeback trail just to find a modicum of the player he once was. It was very humid and I served badly. But del Potro’s bread and butter these days might be the size of his heart.
Juan Martin del Potro, of Argentina, beds over after losing a point to Andy Murray, of England, during their gold medal match at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 14, 2016.
In a dramatic passage of play, the South American was another break to the good but faltered when he served for the set in the 10th game. In total, there were 15, nine from Murray, six by del Potro.
Del Potro fought valiantly on, breaking for 2-1 in the fourth set, courtesy of a close combat exchange at the net but lacking the stamina to back it up and Murray was soon on level terms at 2-2.
They nearly went to a fifth set, too, because del Potro served for the fourth at 5-4, but was broken there, then again in the final game.
It stood up remarkably well but Murray prodded and probed and eventually broke him down, after four hours and two minutes of brutal, sometimes brilliant tennis.
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On Sunday, Murray was able to wear down del Potro by hammering ground strokes to his weaker backhand, and frequently drawing him into the net with deftly placed dropshots.
