28 days later! Murray avenges for Wimbledon final as British star claims another gold for Team GB after dominant win over Federer
PUBLISHED: 16:14, 5 August 2012 | UPDATED: 17:04, 5 August 2012
Andy Murray followed one of the greatest days in British Olympic history with one of the best performances British tennis has ever seen as he crushed Roger Federer to win London 2012 gold.
Murray exacted the sweetest revenge possible for his tear-jerking Wimbledon final loss by inflicting Federer's heaviest ever defeat at the All England Club and winning his country's first men's singles title since 1908.
Flying the flag: The British No 1 parades his gold medal to the delight of the home support
Net gains: Murray looks to he heavens after beating Federer 6-2, 61, 6-4 on Sunday afternoon
The 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 victory margin was scarcely believable against the man who stopped him becoming the country's first men's Wimbledon singles champion for 76 years just 28 days ago, who was desperate to enhance his claim to be the greatest player of all time by clinching a career golden slam.
Murray had little time to celebrate the win as he prepared to go for another gold in the mixed doubles.
What a difference 28 days makes: Murray stormed to victory at Wimbledon after turning in a fine display
Murray was in uncharted territory in a five-set contest against Federer. He had lost every one of their grand slam matches, despite their overall 8-8 head-to-head record.
The Swiss had also won more than once from two sets down at Wimbledon but, after two comfortable holds at the start of the third, he was pummelled into submission again by Murray's crosscourt backhand.
You can't hurry a Murray (or so they say): The British No 1 put Federer to the sword on Centre Court with a dominant display
Everything Murray touched was turning to gold, while Federer's game continued to disintegrate in a manner never before seen on Centre Court.
Murray had come out firing four weeks ago, breaking Federer in the first game, but today it was the Scot who found himself under pressure as he gave away two break points.
Contrasting fortunes: Murray was on another level compared to Federer as the British ace turned in one of the best displays of his career
He saved them both, though, and that was to prove vital as he went on to win the first set.
Federer was making a lot of unforced errors while Murray gradually raised his level and, after missing a chance to break in the fourth game, moved ahead in the sixth when the world No 1 could not handle a fizzing backhand.
Centre Court was rocking, and the noise level increased again when Murray broke to take the set, nailing a backhand pass just inside the line.
Home support: The Wimbledon crowd roared Murray on to glory as they helped create a Davis Cup atmosphere on Centre Court
Murray had talked in the build-up about the rarity of Federer treading new ground and how that levelled the playing field, and he was certainly not showing the same form he did at Wimbledon.
There was a lot on the line for the Swiss player, who is unlikely to have another chance to win a singles gold medal, the only major honour missing from his trophy cabinet.
Tension had crackled around Centre Court in the Wimbledon final but today it seemed to have homed in on Federer's racquet. Even the net was on Murray's side as two bits of luck helped him break for the third time in a row to lead 2-0 in the second set.
In the stands: Andy Murray's girlfriend Kim Sears assumes her position on Centre Court to cheer on her partner
The key game of the match followed as Federer threw everything at Murray in an effort to get back on terms, forcing six break points, but every time he was repelled.
The crowd sensed it was vital he held on, and remarkably he won an eighth straight game when Federer double-faulted, and then a ninth before the Wimbledon champion finally stopped the rot.
There was an air of disbelief on Centre Court, could this really be happening? Federer had a chance to pull one break back but again Murray held firm to move into a two-set lead.
Team Murray: Andy made his way into the stands to celebrate his straight-sets victory over Federer
BRONZE MEDAL MATCH
Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro won the bronze medal in the men's singles after upsetting second seed Novak Djokovic 7-5 6-4 on Wimbledon's Court One.
Del Potro lost a marathon semi-final encounter to Roger Federer on Friday and left the court in tears, but he roused himself physically and mentally to earn his place on the podium.
Djokovic, beaten by Andy Murray in the last four, was the bronze medallist in Beijing four years ago but he ceded first blood when his serve was broken in the 11th game.
He had two chances to break back and force a tie-break but Del Potro held on, and the Argentinian broke again to lead 2-1 in the second set.
Djokovic tried to respond but there was no way back and for the Serb there was only the agony of finishing fourth.
Federer had played for almost four and a half hours on Friday in beating Juan Martin Del Potro in a titanic semi-final and his movement was certainly not up to his usual standard.
But that was to take nothing away from Murray, who was pinning the great man back with the ferocity of his groundstrokes, particularly his cross-court backhand.
A two-set lead was still far from victory of course, with Federer having come back from two sets to love down to win on many occasions, including against Julien Benneteau at Wimbledon.
Often Murray has a dip at such moments but not today, he simply maintained the same excellent level and broke again with another superb backhand. Federer prevented the Scot moving 5-2 ahead and then forced him to serve it out.
The nerves must have been coursing through Murray's body but he did not show it, two big serves bringing up match point before the final coup de grace.
The world No 4 celebrated the finest win of his life by climbing up to the players' box to celebrate with friends and family, and it could yet be double gold with the mixed doubles final still to come.
Murray hailed the biggest win of his career. 'It's No 1 for me,' he told BBC1. 'The biggest win of my life. This week's been incredible so far.
'I've had a lot of fun, the support's been amazing. One more match to go, but it's been unbelievable.'
Murray said he was inspired both by the performances of his Great Britain team-mates and the crowd, who were unusually boisterous for SW19.
'They're unbelievable,' he said. 'It's not just here but all of the events I've watched. I watched the athletics last night it was amazing.
'The way Mo Farah won... I do 400m repetitions in my training and when I'm completely fresh I can run it in 57 seconds and his last lap after 9,600m was 53 seconds. It's just unbelievable fitness.
Centre of attention: Murray provided the Wimbledon crowd with some exhibition celebrating
'It gave me a boost coming into today. The momentum the team's had the last couple of days has been so good.'
Murray admitted the achievement had surprised even him. 'I didn't expect that at the start of the week,' he said.
'I had a chance of going deep into the tournament [but] I was a little bit tired after Wimbledon, and playing the mixed as well.
'But I felt so fresh. On the court today I didn't really feel nervous at all apart from at the beginning of the match.'
Murray felt his victory was the perfect way to recover from his Wimbledon disappointment. 'It's worth it,' he said. 'I've had a lot of tough losses in my career. This is the best way to come back. I'll never forget it.'
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