But Murray is planning to be back at full throttle this weekend, starting with Friday’s opener against former U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro in a repeat of their gruelling final at last month’s Rio Games. This semifinal weekend in Glasgow, Murray will be hoping to move closer to a remake of last year’s buddy movie – winning the Davis Cup alongside his brother Jamie and friends.
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Britain’s day went from bad to worse in Glasgow as Guido Pella then beat Kyle Edmund 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in the second singles.
Murray tried to be upbeat but losing such a contest in the city of his birth, where he is a bona fide hero, will have hurt.
The world number two was having to work hard to remain in the match, digging deep to hold serve until the business end of the set.
“I’m very proud of how I fought, I did fantastic”.
“From a personal point of view, it’s super-exciting for me to be playing here in Scotland, to play in front of a packed-out house with the incredible atmosphere that I’m sure will be the same as a year ago”, he said. That’s all you can do. “It’s very fine margins”, Murray said.
Since returning from his horrendous wrist injury Del Potro had beaten Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal, and he added Murray to the list with an accomplished display.
“We saw past year in the semi-final against Australia, you could see Andy was worn out and he still found a way to do it”, said Smith.
2, will team up with brother Jamie in Saturday’s doubles against Federico Delbonis and Leonardo Mayer.
Despite the world No. 2’s absence, Leon Smith’s side secured a 3-2 win over Serbia thanks to two singles rubbers from Kyle Edmund and the doubles rubber won by Jamie Murray and Dom Inglot.
Murray insisted the uncertainty will not affect him, saying: “Tomorrow we’ll find out and I’ll get ready to play whoever it is on Friday but it doesn’t matter to me who plays the first day”. “I’ve played matches close to that length but none after an extremely long stretch of playing, so I don’t know how I’ll feel in the morning”. Playing Murray in top form in front of one of the most passionate crowds in tennis will be very tough for Pella, but Davis Cup always brings out the best in young players and he’ll no doubt relish the thought of playing against the British number one in that kind of atmosphere.
“I won but I still remember the Olympic final”, Del Potro told BBC Sport. “So exhausted. I’ve got cramps everywhere”.
Viewers can also catch all matches in their entirety on the network’s digital subscription service, Tennis Channel Plus. The 8,000 present in a setting that might have been constructed for the very objective of generating hostile decibels received the victor with the sort of respect normally reserved for one of their own – especially this one of their own.
“It could be the revenge (for the Olympics)”.
The death of his paternal grandfather Gordon Murray clouded preparations for his opening rubber against the man Murray had defeated 32 days earlier in the Olympic final.
But Murray insisted participating in this tie was never in doubt.
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Edmund, 21, was selected ahead of Evans as Britain’s second singles player after rising to 55th in the world and reaching the fourth round at the US Open.
