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Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka battle it out in Cincinnati for almost three hours. After the converted match point, the victorious Scot shows great emotions.
For the fourth time in a row, Stan Wawrinka has already had to give up after his opening game. In Cincinnati, the Romand narrowly missed the liberation and lost to Andy Murray after a hard fight 6: 7, 7: 5 and 5: 7. In the decisive third set, Wawrinka still loses out despite a break advantage in the meantime.
“We’re not young anymore. Matches like this are a lot harder than they used to be when we were in the mid-20s,” the relieved but exhausted winner admits after the game. “Both of us gave our best until the end. Both of us love the sport. We’ve had our struggles with injuries in recent years – I hope you still enjoy watching us play.”
In the case of Wawrinka and Murray, that’s not a given. The two have challenged each other 22 times on the ATP tour, but direct duels have become a rarity in recent years.
A rocky road back
At the last meeting in Roland Garros in September 2020, Wawrinka only leaves six games to the Scot, who recently celebrated his comeback after surviving hip surgery. At the time, only a few experts reckoned that Murray would be able to take revenge for the bankruptcy two years later.
“When I was injured and didn’t know if I could come back, I remembered the reasons why I play tennis. And I started with it as a child because I love it, »Murray looks back in the field interview and fights back tears. “It took a lot of effort and a lot of problems to come back and play at the level again. But I want to make the best of it while I still can.”
In the second round, Murray meets Wimbledon semi-finalist Cameron Norrie on Friday.
