Britain’s Andy Murray has become Wimbledon champion once again after beating Milos Raonic 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(2) with a magical performance in the men’s final yesterday.
Murray’s victory gives him a second Wimbledon crown and a third grand slam title to add to his 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon victories.
And while the finals of both of those matches kept fans guessing right until the end, this time there was no such drama as the Scot delivered an immacualte performance against his Canadian opponent.
“I’ve had some great moments here and some tough losses,” said the winner.
“I played really good stuff today – but Milos has had a really great few weeks on grass. His win against Roger Federer was a really, really great match.”
“It’s a difficult challenge, and Andy’s been playing brilliant,” said Raonic.
“He deserves it, so well done Andy.
“This one’s going to sting… so I’m going to make sure I do everything I can to come back here and have another chance.”
“It’s been a phenomenal two weeks, and before that at Queen’s as well.”
With Novak Djokovic having made a surprise early exit against Sam Querrey before the first week was even over, Murray was a hot odds-on favourite to win.
It’s very different being favourite and converting that status to victory, of course – but it didn’t look that way on Centre Court yesterday.
Indeed, the Scot only looked under threat once, when Raonic earned two break points in the third set.
But Murray quickly saved both and won the game to get himself back on track before crushing his opponent in an utterly one-sided tie-break.
And that was the story of the match, with the underdog battling gamely but never able to keep up – and Murray simply stepping up through the gears whenever he needed to.
From here, Murray now faces another challenge: retaining the Olympic title he won in London four years ago.
And on the evidence of his Wimbledon campaign this year, few would bet against the Scot enjoying another golden slam summer to match his breakthrough year in 2012.
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.
