British former tennis player (born 1987)
For other people with the same name, see Andrew Murray.
Murray at the 2015 Australian Open | |
| Full name | Andrew Barron Murray |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) | Great Britain |
| Residence | Leatherhead, Surrey, England[1] |
| Born | (1987-05-15) 15 May 1987 (age 37)[2] Glasgow, Scotland[3][4] |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[6][7][8][9] |
| Turned pro | 2005[7] |
| Retired | 1 August 2024 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Ivan Lendl (2012–14, 2016–17, 2022–2023)[10] |
| Prize money | US $64,687,542[11] |
| Official website | andymurray.com |
| Career record | 739–262 (73.8%)[a] |
| Career titles | 46 (15th in the Open Era) |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (7 November 2016) |
| Australian Open | F (2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016) |
| French Open | F (2016) |
| Wimbledon | W (2013, 2016) |
| US Open | W (2012) |
| Tour Finals | W (2016) |
| Olympic Games | W (2012, 2016) |
| Career record | 83–86 (49.1%) |
| Career titles | 3 |
| Highest ranking | No. 51 (17 October 2011) |
| Australian Open | 1R (2006) |
| French Open | 2R (2006) |
| Wimbledon | 2R (2019) |
| US Open | 2R (2008) |
| Olympic Games | QF (2020, 2024) |
| Career record | 7–4 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Wimbledon | 3R (2019) |
| Olympic Games | F (2012) |
| Davis Cup | W (2015) |
| Hopman Cup | F (2010) |
Novak Djokovic (2024–) | |
Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis coach and former player. He was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray won three Grand Slam singles titles, two at Wimbledon (in 2013 and 2016), and one at the US Open (in 2012), and reached eleven major finals. Murray was ranked in the top 10 for all but one month from July 2008 through to October 2017, and was in the top 4 in eight of the nine year-end rankings during that time. Murray won 46 ATP Tour singles titles, including 14 Masters 1000 events and back-to-back gold medals in men's singles at the Summer Olympics, the only male player ever to do so.
Originally coached by his mother Judy alongside his older brother Jamie, Murray moved to Barcelona at age 15 to train at the Sánchez-Casal Academy. He began his professional career around the time Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal established themselves as the two dominant players in men's tennis. Murray had immediate success on the ATP Tour, making his top 10 debut in 2007 at age 19. By 2010, Murray and Novak Djokovic had joined Federer and Nadal in the Big Four, the group of players who dominated men's tennis during the 2010s. Murray initially struggled against the rest of the Big Four, losing his first four major finals (three to Federer and one to Djokovic). He made his major breakthrough in 2012 by defeating Federer to win the London Olympics and defeating Djokovic to win the US Open, becoming the first British major singles champion since Virginia Wade in 1977, and the first male champion since Fred Perry in 1936. He also beat Djokovic to win Wimbledon in 2013.
Murray had his career-best season in 2016, when he made three major finals, winning Wimbledon. He defended his title at the 2016 Rio Olympics to become the only player, male or female, to win two Olympic gold medals in singles. Murray also became world No. 1 for the first time in 2016, and clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking by winning the Tour Finals title over Djokovic. After 2016, he struggled with various injuries and fell out of the top 100 in 2018 due to only seldom playing on tour, though he slowly rose back to the top 50 in the 2020s. He played his final professional tennis tournament at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Murray was an all-court player who excelled in particular at defence, returning serve and constructing points. He was generally regarded as having one of the most consistent two-handed backhands on the ATP Tour. Murray is credited with re-establishing the United Kingdom as a leading force in men's tennis for the first time since the early 20th century. He and his brother led the Great Britain Davis Cup team to a title in 2015. Murray has been outspoken on issues of equality, and became only the second top-10 player in the history of the ATP Tour to have a female coach when he hired Amélie Mauresmo in 2014. Shortly following his playing career, Murray announced a coaching partnership with his old rival Djokovic for the 2025 Australian Open.
Andy Murray was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the son of Judy Murray (née Erskine) and William Murray.[4] His maternal grandfather, Roy Erskine, was a professional footballer in the late 1950s.[12] Murray is a supporter of Hibernian Football Club, one of the teams his grandfather represented,[13][14] and Arsenal Football Club.[15] Murray began playing tennis at the age of three, when his mother Judy took him to play on the local courts.[16] He played in his first competitive tournament at age five and by the time he was eight he was competing with adults in the Central District Tennis League.[17] Murray's elder brother, Jamie, is also a professional tennis player.[18][19][20][21][22]
Murray grew up in Dunblane and attended Dunblane Primary School. Both he and his brother were present during the 1996 Dunblane school massacre,[23] when Thomas Hamilton killed 16 children and a teacher before shooting himself; Murray took cover in a classroom.[24] Murray says he was too young to understand what was happening and is generally reluctant to talk about it in interviews,[25] but in his autobiography Hitting Back he states that he attended a youth group run by Hamilton and his mother gave Hamilton lifts in her car.[26] Murray later attended Dunblane High School.[27][28]
Murray's parents split up when he was 10, with the boys living with their father while being mentored in tennis by their mother.[29] He believes this could be the reason behind his competitive spirit.[30] At 15, he was asked to train with Rangers Football Club at their School of Excellence, but declined, opting to focus on his tennis career.[31] He then decided to move to Barcelona, Spain. There he trained on the clay courts of the Sánchez-Casal Academy, coached by Pato Alvarez, and also spent time studying at the Schiller International School.[32] Murray described this time as "a big sacrifice".[28] His parents had to pay £40,000 for his 18-month stay.[29] In Spain, he trained with Emilio Sánchez, former world No. 1 doubles player.[28]
Murray was born with a bipartite patella, a condition in which the kneecap remains as two separate bones instead of fusing together in early childhood. It was not diagnosed until he was aged 16. He has been seen holding his knee due to the pain caused by the condition and has withdrawn from tournaments because of it.[33]
In February 2013, Murray bought Cromlix House hotel near Dunblane for £1.8 million. The hotel had been closed since 2012,[34] but Murray reopened it in April 2014.[35] Later that month Murray was awarded the freedom of Stirling and received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Stirling in recognition of his services to tennis.[36]
Murray began dating Kim Sears, daughter of player-turned-coach Nigel Sears, in 2005.[37][38] Their engagement was announced in November 2014,[38] and they married on 11 April 2015 at Dunblane Cathedral.[39] The couple previously lived in Oxshott, Surrey,[1] but in 2022, moved to nearby Leatherhead.[40] The newly constructed house will accommodate their young family, consisting of their son and three daughters; the youngest, a girl, was born in March 2021.[41][42][43][44][45]
Murray has been repeatedly vocal in his support for women players and coaches.[46][47] He is also a vocal supporter of LGBT+ rights and supports same-sex marriage.[48] In June 2020, he also lent his support to the Black Lives Matter movement, when he and fellow players took a knee during the Schroders Battle of the Brits exhibition tournament.[49][50]
Leon Smith, Murray's tennis coach from 11 to 17,[32] described Murray as "unbelievably competitive", while Murray attributes his abilities to the motivation gained from losing to his older brother Jamie. In 1999 Murray was a champion in the Orange Bowl, an international tournament for junior players, winning in the 12-year-old category.[51][52]
In January 2001, Murray participated in the Petits As tournament, an event for players under 14, and it was here that he began his rivalry with Novak Djokovic, beating him 6–0, 6–1 in the quarterfinals.[53][54] In the semis, Murray overcame Mischa Zverev, but lost the final to Russia's Alexandre Krasnoroutskiy.[55] He then led the British team to victory in the European Winter Cup and won a title in Telford, finishing the season as the No. 2 in the ETA ranking for U14s, only behind Djokovic.[54]
In July 2003, Murray started out on the Challenger and Futures circuit. In his first tournament, he reached the quarter-finals of the Manchester Challenger.[56] In September, Murray won his first senior title by taking the Glasgow Futures event.[57] He also reached the semi-finals of the Edinburgh Futures event.[58]
For the first six months of 2004, Murray had a knee injury and could not play.[59] In July 2004, Murray played a Challenger event in Nottingham, where he lost to future Grand Slam finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the second round.[60] Murray then went on to win Futures events in Xàtiva[61] and Rome.[62]
In September 2004, he won the Junior US Open and was selected for the Davis CupWorld Group play-off match against Austria later that month;[63] however, he was not selected to play. Later that year, he won BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.[64]
As a junior, Murray reached as high as No. 6 in the world in 2003 (and No. 8 in doubles). In the 2004-instated combined rankings, he reached No. 2 in the world.[65]
Murray began 2005 ranked No. 407,[66] but whilst in South America in January he injured his back and was forced to take three months off.[59]
In March, he became the youngest Briton to play in the Davis Cup.[67] Murray turned professional in April and was given a wild card entry to a clay-court tournament in Barcelona, the Open SEAT, where he lost in three sets to Jan Hernych.[68] In April, Murray parted acrimoniously from his coach Pato Alvarez, complaining about his negative attitude.[69] Murray then reached the semi-finals of the boys' French Open, where he lost in straight sets to Marin Čilić.[70]
Mark Petchey became Murray's coach.[69] Given a wild card to Queen's,[71] Murray progressed past Santiago Ventura in straight sets for his first ATP match win.[72] Following a second-round win against Taylor Dent,[73] he lost to former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson in the third round in three sets after cramping and twisting his ankle.[74][75] Following his performance at Queen's, Murray received a wild card for Wimbledon. Ranked No. 312, Murray became the first Scot in the Open Era to reach the third round of the men's singles tournament at Wimbledon.[76] In the third round, Murray lost to 2002 Wimbledon finalist David Nalbandian due to cramping and fatigue, having led two sets to love.[77]
Murray won Challenger events on the hard courts of Aptos and Binghamton, New York. At Cincinnati, he lost in three sets to then-No. 4, Marat Safin. With a wild card entry, Murray beat Andrei Pavel in the first round of the US Open, where he recovered from down two sets to one to win his first five-set match.[78] However, he lost in the second round to Arnaud Clément in five sets.[79] Murray was again selected for the Davis Cup match against Switzerland. He lost in straight sets to Stanislas Wawrinka.[80] Murray made his first ATP final at the Thailand Open where he lost to No. 1 Roger Federer in straight sets.[81]
Murray beat Tim Henman in their first meeting, at the Basel Swiss Indoors in the first round, and reached the quarter-finals.[82]
Murray completed the year ranked No. 64 and was named the 2005 BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year.[83]
The 2006 season saw Murray compete on the full circuit for the first time and split with his coach Mark Petchey[84] and team up with Brad Gilbert.[85]
At San Jose in February, Murray defeated a top ten player for the first time, Andy Roddick.[86] Murray went won the title beating No. 11 Lleyton Hewitt.[87] As a result, Murray became the British No. 1 later that month, ending Tim Henman's seven-year run. Murray was now world No. 42, Greg Rusedski No. 43, and Tim Henman No. 49.[88] Rusedski regained his British No. 1 status on 15 May[89] for eight weeks.[90]
Murray suffered a straight sets defeat at the Australian Open, to Juan Ignacio Chela in the first round[91] and to Gaël Monfils at the French Open, in five sets.[92] Murray reached the fourth round for the first time at both Wimbledon (beating 3rd seed Andy Roddick in the 3rd round) and the US Open.[93][94]
Murray played in Davis Cup ties against Serbia, Israel and Ukraine. Murray missed the opening singles matches before losing the doubles as Britain lost their tie against Serbia.[95] During the tie with Israel, Murray won his rubber and lost the doubles before pulling out with a neck injury before the reverse singles, as Britain lost the tie.[96][97][98] Against Ukraine, Murray won both his singles rubbers, but lost the doubles, as Britain won the tie.[99][100][101]
At the Masters, Murray lost in the first round in Miami,[102] Monte Carlo and Rome.[103][104] Murray went out of the tournaments in Indian Wells and Hamburg in the second round.[105][106] Murray reached his first Masters semi-final in Toronto at the Rogers Cup, losing to Richard Gasquet.[107]
At Cincinnati, Murray became only one of two players, alongside Rafael Nadal, to defeat Roger Federer in 2006, breaking the Swiss star's 55 match winning streak on hard courts.[108] He lost two rounds later to Andy Roddick, but broke into the top 20 for the first time.[109][110] In the final two Masters events in Madrid and Paris, Murray exited both tournaments at the last-16 stage ending his season, with losses to Novak Djokovic and Dominik Hrbatý.[111][112] Murray was a finalist at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic.[113] Playing doubles with his brother in Bangkok the pair reached the final.[114] After the French Open, where Murray was injured again, he revealed that his bones hadn't fully grown, causing him to suffer from cramps and back problems.[115] He finished the year ranked 17.
Murray reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, where he lost a five-set match against No. 2, Rafael Nadal.[116]
Following the Miami Masters, where he reached the semi-finals,[117] Murray reached the No. 10 ranking on 16 April.[118]
The British No. 1 sustained tendon damage during his first round match at the German Open in Hamburg. Murray was up 5–1 when he hit a forehand from the back of the court and snapped the tendons in his wrist, leaving him out of action from 15 May until 7 August, thereby missing Wimbledon.[119] During this rest period, Murray rose to No. 8, but by 7 August, he had dropped to No. 14.[118]
Murray suffered a third round loss at the US Open. At the Masters tournaments, Murray reached the semi-finals of Indian Wells and Miami. At Rome and Cincinnati, Murray exited in the first round whilst going out in the second in Canada. In the final two masters tournaments, Murray exited in the third round in Madrid and he went out in the quarter-finals of Paris. Murray won titles in San Jose and St. Petersburg.[120] He also reached the final of tournaments in Doha and Metz, finishing the season ranked 11th in the world.[118]
In November, Murray split with his coach Brad Gilbert and added a team of experts along with Miles Maclagan, his main coach.[121][122]
In 2008, Murray suffered a first round loss at the Australian Open to eventual runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and a third round loss at the French Open to Nicolás Almagro.[123] Murray then made his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon before making his first final at the US Open. During the tournament in New York, Murray claimed his first win over Nadal. That victory meant that he became the first player from Britain since Greg Rusedski in 1997 to reach a major final.[124] In his first Grand Slam final Murray suffered a straight sets loss to Federer.[125][126] At the Beijing Olympics, Murray suffered one of the worst defeats of his career, losing his first round singles match to No. 77 Yen-hsun Lu of Taiwan in straight sets. That abject defeat was still on his mind in a BBC interview five years later – despite an intervening Olympic gold medal and a head-to-head win – when he met the same player (now ranked No. 75) in the second round of Wimbledon 2013.[127]
In the Masters tournaments, Murray went out in round four in Indian Wells and the first round of Miami. In the clay Masters Murray made the third round of Monte Carlo and Hamburg and the second of Rome. On the American hard court swing Murray made the semi-finals of Toronto before winning his first Masters shield in Cincinnati. He added another shield to his collection in Madrid;[128] before losing in the quarter-finals of Paris. Now at No. 4 in the world, Murray qualified for the first time for the Masters Cup. He played well in defeating an injured Federer[129] but lost to Davydenko in the semi-finals.[130] Murray ended 2008 ranked No. 4. Murray also won tournaments in Doha, Marseille and St Petersburg.
At the Qatar Open in Doha, Murray beat Andy Roddick in straight sets in the final.[131] At the Australian Open, Murray made it to the fourth round, losing to Fernando Verdasco.[132] Murray won Rotterdam, defeating No. 1, Nadal in three sets.[133] Murray lost in the final to Nadal at Indian Wells,[134] but won a week later in Miami over Djokovic for another masters title.
Murray beat No. 9, Nikolay Davydenko at Monte Carlo, the first time he had beaten a top ten player on clay,[135] though he lost to Nadal in the semi-finals. Murray was upset in round two of Rome by qualifier Juan Mónaco, and he reached the quarter-finals of Madrid, losing to Juan Martín del Potro. During this time Murray achieved the highest ever ranking of a British male in the Open Era when he reached the No. 3 ranking on 11 May 2009.[136] Murray reached the quarter-finals of the French Open, but was defeated by Fernando González in four sets.
Murray won a title for the first time on grass at Queen's and became the first British winner of the tournament since 1938. In the final Murray beat James Blake.[137] At Wimbledon, against Stanislas Wawrinka, Murray's fourth round match was the first match to be played entirely under Wimbledon's retractable roof. This also enabled it to be the then latest finishing match ever at Wimbledon, a record he would go on to eclipse three years later.[138] However Murray lost a tight semi-final to Andy Roddick.
At Montreal, he beat del Potro in three sets to take the title[139] and overtook Nadal in the rankings. He held the number two position until the start of the US Open.[140] Murray followed the Masters win playing at the Cincinnati Masters, where he lost to Federer. At the US Open, Murray was hampered by a wrist injury and suffered a straight-sets loss to Čilić.[141] Murray won both his singles matches, and lost at doubles in the Davis Cup against Poland,[142] but then missed six weeks with a wrist injury.[143]
In November, Murray won at Valencia,[143][144] but bowed out in round two of the Paris Masters. To end the season, Murray did not make it out of the round robin at the World Tour Finals in London.[145] He ended the year ranked 4.
I can cry like Roger, it's just a shame I can't play like him.
– Murray during his runner's up speech at the 2010 Australian Open.[146]
At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Murray lost in the quarter-finals to Robin Söderling in straight sets. Murray lost his first match at the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open to Mardy Fish, afterwards saying that his mind hadn't been fully on tennis.[147] Murray lost his first match at Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters to Philipp Kohlschreiber. He and Ross Hutchins lost in the doubles to the Bryan brothers on a champions tie-breaker. Murray reached the third round in the Rome Masters, and the quarter-finals at the Madrid Masters, losing both times to David Ferrer.[148][149]
At the French Open he lost in straight sets to Tomáš Berdych in the fourth round.[150] In London, Murray progressed to the third round, where he lost to Mardy Fish in a tie-breaker for his second defeat by him in the year.[151][152] At Wimbledon, Murray progressed to the semi-finals, losing to Nadal in straight sets.[153] In July, Murray and his coach Maclagan split, and Murray replaced him with Àlex Corretja.[154]
At 2010 Farmers Classic, Murray lost in the final to Sam Querrey in three sets.[155] In Canada, Murray became the first player since Andre Agassi in 1995 to defend the Canadian Masters. Murray defeated Nadal and then Federer in straight sets, ending his eight-month title drought.[156] At Cincinnati, Murray first complained about the speed of the court,[157] and then in a quarter-final match with Fish, Murray complained that the organisers refused to put the match on later in the day.[158] With temperatures reaching 33 °C in the shade, Murray won the first set in a tie-breaker but began to feel ill due to the heat. He lost the second set, but forced a final-set tie-breaker, before Fish won.[159] After losing to Stanislas Wawrinka in the third round of the US Open, questions about Murray's conditioning arose, as he called the trainer out twice during the match.[160]
At China Open in Beijing, Murray reached the quarter-finals, losing to Ivan Ljubičić.[161] Murray then won the Shanghai Rolex Masters beating Roger Federer in straight sets.[162] He did not drop a set throughout the event. At Valencia he lost in the second round to Juan Mónaco.[163] However, in doubles, Murray partnered his brother Jamie Murray to the final, where they beat Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi. The victory was Murray's first doubles title and the second time he had reached a final with his brother.[164]
Murray reached the quarter-finals at the BNP Paribas Masters losing to Gaël Monfils in three sets. At the Tour finals in London, Murray went 2–1 in round robin play before facing Nadal in the semi-final. They battled for over three hours, before Murray fell to the Spaniard in a final-set tie-breaker, bringing an end to his season.[165] He ended the year ranked 4 for the third consecutive year.
At the Australian Open, Murray met former champion Novak Djokovic in the final and was defeated in straight sets. In Rotterdam, he was defeated by Marcos Baghdatis in the first round.[166] Murray reached the semi-finals of the doubles tournament with his brother Jamie. Murray lost to qualifiers in the first rounds at the Masters Series events in Indian Wells and Miami, after which he split with coach Àlex Corretja.[167]
Murray returned to form at Monte Carlo, but lost to Nadal in the semi-finals.[168] Murray sustained an elbow injury before the match and subsequently withdrew from Barcelona due to the injury.[169] Murray lost in the third round at the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, but made it to the semi-finals of the Rome Masters, where he lost to Novak Djokovic.[170]
At the French Open, he lost in his first semi-final at Roland Garros, against Rafael Nadal.[171][172][173]
Murray defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to win his second Queen's Club title.[174] At Wimbledon, Murray lost in the semi-final to Nadal, despite taking the first set.[175] At the Davis Cup tie between Great Britain and Luxembourg, Murray led the British team to victory.[176] Murray was the two-time defending 2011 Rogers Cup champion, but lost in the second round to South African Kevin Anderson.[177] He won the 2011 Western & Southern Open after Novak Djokovic retired due to injury.[178] At the US Open, Murray battled from two sets down to win a five-set second-round encounter with Robin Haase, but lost in the semi-finals to Rafael Nadal in four sets.[179] This was the first time in his career that Andy had reached the quarter-finals, or better, at all four slams in a calendar year.
Murray won the Thailand Open. At the Japan Open he beat Rafael Nadal for the first time in 2011 in three sets. Murray then won the doubles with his brother Jamie, becoming the first person in the 2011 season to capture both singles and doubles titles at the same tournament. Murray then successfully defended his Shanghai Masters crown with a straight-sets victory over David Ferrer in the final. At the ATP World Tour Finals, Murray lost to David Ferrer in straight sets and withdrew from the tournament after the loss with a groin pull. Murray ended the year ranked 4, behind Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer, for the fourth consecutive year.
Main article: 2012 Andy Murray tennis season
With Ivan Lendl as his new full-time coach,[180] Murray won Brisbane beating Alexandr Dolgopolov in the final.[181] In doubles, he lost in the quarter-finals against Jürgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner.[182] After an exhibition tournament,[183] Murray reached the semi-finals of the 2012 Australian Open, where he lost to Novak Djokovic in a four-hour-and 50-minute match.[184]
At Dubai, Murray beat Djokovic in the semi-finals, but lost the final to Roger Federer.[185] After an early defeat at the BNP Paribas Open, Murray made the final of the Miami Masters, losing to Djokovic.[186] Murray then had quarter-final losses at the Monte Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open, and a third round loss at the Italian Open.[187][188][189] Murray battled back spasms throughout the French Open, and in the quarter-finals, he was beaten by David Ferrer.[190]
Murray lost in the opening round of Queen's to No. 65 Nicolas Mahut.[191] At Wimbledon, Murray set the then record for the latest finish at the championships when he completed a four-set victory over Marcos Baghdatis at 23:02 BST (surpassed by one minute by the 2018 men's singles semi-finals).[192] Murray beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semi-final in four sets to become the first male British player to reach the Wimbledon final since Bunny Austin in 1938.[193] In the final, he lost to Federer in four sets.[194]
Murray returned to Wimbledon to compete in the London 2012 Summer Olympics. He and brother Jamie Murray lost in round one to Austria (Jürgen Melzer and Alexander Peya) in three sets.[195] In the mixed doubles, Murray and Laura Robson lost in the final to the Belarusian top seeds (Victoria Azarenka and Max Mirnyi) in three sets, gaining a silver medal. In singles, Murray lost only one set and beat Federer in the final for the loss of just 7 games.[186] Murray became the first British man to win the Olympic singles gold medal in tennis since Josiah Ritchie in 1908.[196] Murray retired early in the Rogers Cup due to a knee injury, and was beaten by Jérémy Chardy at Cincinnati in straight sets.
At US Open, he beat Milos Raonic in straight sets in round four, and then in the quarter-finals, had to come from a set and two breaks down against Marin Čilić to prevail in four. In the semi-finals, he defeated Tomáš Berdych in almost four hours, to reach his second consecutive Grand Slam final. Murray beat Djokovic in five sets, becoming the first British man to win a Grand Slam final since Fred Perry in 1936,[197] and the first Scottish-born player to win a Grand Slam final since Harold Mahony in 1896.[198] The win would also set several records for Murray: the longest tiebreak in US Open final history at 12–10 in the first set, it made Murray the first man ever to win an Olympic gold medal and the US Open in the same year, and it tied with the 1988 US Open final (in which Murray's coach Lendl competed) as the longest final in the tournament's history.[199] By defeating Djokovic in the final, Murray achieved his 100th Grand Slam career match win. The victory made Murray part of the "Big Four" according to many pundits and contemporaries, including Novak Djokovic.[200][201]
Murray lost in the semi-finals of the Japan Open to Milos Raonic in three sets. In the doubles he and his brother Jamie lost in the quarter-finals to Leander Paes and Radek Štěpánek. At Shanghai, Murray beat Roger Federer in the semi-finals in straight sets. After failing to capitalise on five match points, Murray eventually lost the final to Djokovic in three sets, bringing to an end his 12–0 winning streak at the competition.[202][203] When Nadal pulled out of both the Paris Masters and the year-end championships,[204] Murray finished the year at No. 3. At the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Murray was voted third, ahead of Mo Farah.[205] Murray won the World Breakthrough of the Year at the Laureus World Sports Awards.[206]
Murray was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to tennis.[207][208][209]
Main article: 2013 Andy Murray tennis season
Murray won Brisbane beating Grigor Dimitrov in the final in straight sets.[210][211] At the Australian Open he prevailed in 5 sets against Federer in the semis (his first Grand Slam win over Roger). With this victory, each member of the Big Four (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray) had beaten the other three at the majors.[212] Murray was eventually defeated in four sets by Djokovic.[213] Murray became only the second man in the Open Era to achieve three runner-up finishes at the Australian Open, the other being Stefan Edberg.
At Indian Wells, Murray lost in the quarter-finals to Juan Martín del Potro in three sets.[214] In the Miami final against David Ferrer, Murray faced match point in the decider at 5–6, but won on a third-set tiebreaker to win his second Miami Masters title, and overtook Roger Federer into second place in the rankings, ending a near-decade long time period in which either Federer or Rafael Nadal were ranked in the top two.[215] Murray briefly fell back to No. 3, following a third round defeat by Stanislas Wawrinka in Monte-Carlo, but soon reclaimed the No. 2 ranking. Murray lost in the quarter-finals in Madrid to Tomáš Berdych in straight sets.[216]
At Rome, Murray retired due to a hip injury during his second round match against Marcel Granollers on his 26th birthday. This left Murray with only eleven days to be fit for the start of the French Open.[217]
Murray withdrew from Roland Garros with a back injury.[218] He made his comeback at Queen's, where he came from behind to beat Marin Čilić in three sets to claim his third title at Queen's Club.[219]
Going into Wimbledon, Murray had not lost a match on grass since the previous year's final. Murray made it through to his tenth consecutive Grand Slam quarter-final.[220] For the seventh time in his career, Murray had to come back from a deficit of two sets to come through in five sets against Fernando Verdasco,[221] then beat 24th seed Jerzy Janowicz in four sets (dropping the first) to make it through to his second consecutive Wimbledon final, and third consecutive major final against Novak Djokovic.[222]
Despite the Serb being the favourite to win the title throughout the Championships, Murray overcame Djokovic in a straight sets match that lasted over three hours, to become the first British winner of the men's singles title since Fred Perry in 1936 and to extend his winning streak on grass to 18 matches.[223]
At the US Open, Murray entered a Grand Slam tournament as defending champion for the first time and reached the quarter-finals at a major for the 11th straight tournament. In the last 8, Murray lost to Stanislas Wawrinka in straight sets, ending Murray's streak of four consecutive major finals.[224] The Great Britain Davis Cup team played their World Group Play-off tie on clay against Croatia, where Murray beat 16-year-old Borna Ćorić in straight sets. He and Colin Fleming beat Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavić in the doubles, and Murray then sealed Britain's return to the World Group by defeating Dodig in straight sets.[225]
Following the Davis Cup, Murray's season was cut short by his decision to undergo surgery, in order to sort out the lower back problems that had caused him problems since the early stages of the previous season.[226] Following the conclusion of the 2013 season, Murray was voted the 2013 BBC Sports Personality of the Year.[227]
Main article: 2014 Andy Murray tennis season
At Qatar Murray beat Mousa Shanan Zayed in straight sets in 37 minutes without dropping a game, but was defeated in three sets by No. 40 Florian Mayer in the second round, despite being a set and a break up.[228]
At Australian Open, Murray went out in four sets in the quarters to Roger Federer, ending his streak of four consecutive Australian Open semi-finals.[229] As a result of losing before the final, Murray fell to No. 6, falling out of the top 5 for the first time since 2008.
In the Davis Cup World Group first round Great Britain faced United States. Murray won both of his ties against Donald Young and Sam Querrey, helping Britain to their first Davis Cup quarter-final since 1986.[230] Murray lost in the quarter finals of Rotterdam, to Marin Čilić and the semis of Mexican Open in Acapulco, to Grigor Dimitrov (in a three-setter).
At Indian Wells, Murray lost in round four to Milos Raonic in three sets. Murray and Jonathan Marray lost in round two of the doubles to Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares. Murray split with coach Ivan Lendl.[231] At Miami, Murray lost to Djokovic in the quarter-finals.[232] In the Davis Cup quarter-finals against Italy, he beat Andreas Seppi, he and Colin Fleming won the doubles and he lost to Fabio Fognini in straight sets (Great Britain lost the deciding final rubber).[233]