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Murray defends himself two sets short, saves a match point in the fourth, and then breaks in the fifth to win the outright thriller at Flushing Meadows.
Last update: 02/09/20 12:25 am
Andy Murray fought two sets against to defeat Yoshihito Nishioka on his return to the Grand Slam.
Andy Murray’s long-awaited Grand Slam comeback ended with a sensational five-set victory against Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka at the US Open on Tuesday.
Murray, who was playing his first Grand Slam tournament since the 2019 Australian Open, relied on his remarkable powers of recovery to fight from the brink of defeat to beat World No. 49 Nishioka 4-6 4-6 7- 6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in four hours and 38 minutes.
“I’m tired. My big toes on both sides are pretty bruised,” said Murray, who looked like he had never been away as he shoved himself, his coach and his opponent through the wringer.
“But I did well. At first I was worried about playing a long match and I was moving, like you do in juniors. But once I was two sets down I had to put on the afterburners.
“I had to start hitting the ball better. I was a bit hesitant. Then I went the other way to take risks and make mistakes. But towards the end I started to balance well.
“They have an ice bath in the locker room for emergencies only, but for me this is an emergency! That is by far the most tennis I have played since 2019, so I need to recover well.”
After 596 days, a metal hip, a brief but pleasant stint in doubles, and a global pandemic later, Murray returned to playing major singles, a triumph in itself.
At Arthur Ashe Stadium, where some of his best moments have occurred, memorably winning the 2012 title, the Scotsman, who had a metal plate inserted into his hip in January 2019, had supported his body to overcome a best five-set singles matches just days before.
He had shown positive signs by defeating world number 7 Alexander Zverev in an impressive comeback on tour at last week’s Western & Southern Open.
However, left-hander Nishioka’s awkward style meant he was going to be a tough opponent for Murray and he proved it during two sets by dragging Murray into long plays in the background.
The 24-year-old secured the first break of the match in the seventh game and served the first set comfortably.
Two double faults by Murray set the tone for a punishing second set for the former world number one, who quickly found himself with a double break and 4-0 down.
A break back offered a glimmer of hope, but when Nishioka delivered a handsome second serve at set point, Murray must have thought he was out of luck when he snapped a rope to send a long return.
Murray produced a surprising comeback to outlast Yoshihito Nishioka
In two sets and a break, Murray finally got up. All the talk to himself and the complaints with coach Jamie Delgado, sitting alone in the stands, resurfaced when he reached a tie-break.
The old warrior was back, as was Murray’s right zipper as he cut the deficit in half, before saving a match point en route to leveling the game with a second tiebreaker.
An exquisite balloon from Murray nullified another break and when Nishioka landed a long forehand, Murray, the fierce competitor finally resurfaced, finishing off the Japanese point guard for another of his Houdini acts.
“Physically I did quite well,” Murray added. “My toes hurt and everything. In fact, I did pretty well for it being such a long game.
“I don’t know if that was because maybe I didn’t use as much energy in the first two sets because I was moving around a bit. But I did pretty well physically.”
He will have to recover quickly as his next opponent will be the 15th seed in Canada. Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Dan Evans overcame his first-round match in straight sets
Dan evans joined the national success story at Flushing Meadows by defeating Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-2 6-1 7-6 (5). The British No. 2 took the lead by creating an immediate double break and proceeded to charge through the first two sets.
Seyboth Wild, a former US Open youth champion in 2018, rallied in the third set and forced a tie-break, but Evans completed the victory on his second match point.
Dominic Thiem will face Sumit Nagal of India in the second round
Austria’s second favorite Dominic Thiem advanced to the second round when Spaniard Jaume Munar retired after losing the first two sets.
Thiem, who reached his third Grand Slam final at this year’s Australian Open, where he lost to Novak Djokovic, was winning 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 when Munar finished the match.
The next one for Thiem will be that of India Sumit Nagal, who became the first Indian man to win a match at the US Open in seven years by beating Bradley Klahn 6-1 6-3 3-6 6-1.
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