Was Andy Murray Unlucky to Play During Tennis’ Greatest Era?

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Andy Murray is likely to bow out of Wimbledon in 2024 for the final time in his career. The two-time winner at SW19 won three Grand Slam tournaments in his career and two Olympic gold medals.

Murray has battled with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic for most of his career. He will hang up his racquet a long way short of those three players’ Grand Slam tally. However, all three men have spoken very highly about how the Scot pushed them all on the court.

Should Murray have played in any other era at his peak, he is likely to be much higher up the all-time Grand Slam trophies count. The former world number one player has competed in the greatest era the sport has ever seen.

The man from Glasgow has won a total of 46 ATP singles tournaments. That puts him 15th in the Open Era. He has had success on all three surfaces in the sport, which showcases how versatile he has been.

Murray No Longer a Leading Contender

After having two hip surgeries and several other injury setbacks over the last few years, Murray is no longer a strong contender for the trophy at Wimbledon or the other Grand Slam events. The furthest he has gone at SW19 in the last seven years is the third round.

Murray’s last singles tournament triumph on the ATP Tour came in 2019 at the European Open in Belgium. He defeated one of his old rivals Stan Wawrinka in the final. Since then, he has been victorious on three occasions on the ATP Challenger Tour, with his most recent coming on grass in Nottingham in 2023.

The Scottish player is 66/1 in the 2024 Wimbledon outright betting to pull off a fairytale victory this year. Those looking to back the former British number one should consider the free bet offers no deposit needed on the list of leading bookmakers. You can pick up a 100% free bonus with sites such as 888 Casino and PokerStars Casino.

Murray’s overall record at Wimbledon is 63-12, so he has a lot of experience to fall back on at the age of 37. He will be getting as much court time as he can in before Wimbledon at warm-up events such as the Queen’s Club Championship and Rothesay International in Eastbourne.

First Grand Slam Success

It took Murray five attempts to win a Grand Slam final. He was beaten in the finals of the 2008 US Open, 2010 Australian Open and 2012 Wimbledon by Federer, while Djokovic got the better of him in straight sets in the final of the 2011 Australian Open.

Murray’s first triumph came in New York in an epic final of the 2012 US Open. He came from 1-2 down to defeat Djokovic 3-2. That was a huge moment in his career as he proved to the tennis world that he had the game to compete and succeed against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

In what was a big year for the British star, Murray also won the gold medal in the men’s singles event at the Olympic Games in London in 2012. He finally picked up a big victory over Federer in a final in front of his own supporters on the grass at Wimbledon.

Second Wimbledon Title the Best Moment of his Career

Arguablly Murray’s best moment of his career came at Wimbledon in 2016. He won his home Grand Slam event for a second time, and it proved his first success was no fluke. The Scotsman did not drop a set in the semi-final or final, with wins coming over big servers Tomas Berdych and Milos Raonic respectively.

Not long after the Wimbledon Championships, Murray became the first player in history to win gold medals at consecutive Olympic Games. The recently crowned Wimbledon champion beat Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro in the final in Rio to pick up a second gold medal for Great Britain.

Murray is sure to get a fantastic reception from the Wimbledon crowd when he leaves Centre Court for the last time this summer. He has created some long-lasting memories at the venue, and perhaps one day, there will be a statue at the venue in his honour.

 

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