| CAMPEON DE WIMBLEDON! |
When Andy Murray pulled out of Roland Garros, All of Britain was in limbo. That feeling of unrest set in once again. The reality that Wimbledon might not see a home Champion in a while yet was rearing its ugly head. But the World Number Two bounced back and won the warm up tournament in Queen's, taking the Title from last year's titlist, Marin Cilic..Once again, hope sprung eternal. The entire weight of pressure rested on the 26 year old Dunblane native's shoulders. He was aware that no British man had reigned supreme at the All England Club since 1936. 77 long and agonising years. Despite an OUTSTANDING AND HUGELY SUCCESSFUL 2012 which saw him crowned US OPEN CHAMPION and Olympic Gold (singles) and Silver (mixed doubles) medallist, the Brits knew that victory at Wimbledon supersedes any and everything else. Someone once told me that one WIMBLEDON title is equal to 5 other Grand Slam triumphs (Australia, RG and USO). Such is the high esteem that gold plated trophy is held in.
Then came WIMBLEDON 2013...Perhaps the weirdest tennis tournament of all time. Injuries and withdrawals became the order of the day. Rafa Nadal was sent back to Majorca by an unheralded Belgian, Steve Darcis, who paid for his miraculous act in the very next phase. His shoulder gave in and he couldn't turn up for the match v Kubot (who reached the QF). The 7-time Wimbledon Champion and arguably the Greatest Tennis player of all time, Roger Federer was eliminated by Sergy Stakhovsky who couldn't back it up in Round 3 (l. to Melzer). Maria Sharapova lost to an unknown wild card entrant in Michelle Larcher De Brito. It did not end there. 16 time Grand Slam Champion and defending Wimbledon Champion relinquished her hold of the Venus Rosewater dish in the 4th Round v Sabine Lisicki (l in the final to Marion Bartoli). All the talk of Nadal being seeded fifth and a possible QUARTER-FINAL clash with Roger Federer sounded foolish in the end. However, it paved the way for Murray to breeze through his half of the draw. The only really difficult match was the one against Verdasco in the Round of right, where he had to call on the British Tennis gods to help him navigate through a match in which he found himself two sets down. He won that in five, then came the new World Number 17, Jerzy Janowicz who led 7-6, 4-1 until Murray remembered what was at stake and rolled through in 4 sets. The other semi-final btw Del Potro and the Djoker ended in heartbreak for the Argentine Tower who lost in 5 sets. Not too bad for a man who almost threw in the towel in the previous round.
The stage was set. THE DREAM FINAL everyone envisaged. WORLD NUMBER ONE V WORLD NUMBER TWO. For Novak Djokovic, it was another chance to add to his Grand Slam haul which stood (still stands at six) and the Wimbledon crown he won in 2011 (D. Nadal). He was appearing in his 11th Major Final and had lost just four. Muzza was appearing in his seventh final and 2nd straight Wimbledon title match. He had lost five of the last six, including this year's Australian Open Final to the same opponent. He knew what was stake and straight from the off, he went about his business very well and in three hours, he brought the Serb Warrior to his knees. The match ended in a straight sets (6-4, 7-5. 6-4) triumph for the Double Olympic medallist and US Open Champion. The long wait was over. 77 years of misery finally buried. A new King was crowned at the All England Club and the Duke of Kent was finally able to hand out the gentleman's singles trophy to a Brit. A very special day in the History of British Tennis. One that will be remembered for generations. Knighthood to follow soon. Don;t look beyond the new Champion of Wimbledon for the 2013 BBC SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD. He has earned everything that is coming his way. A true LEGEND in the making.
Ohireime P Eboreime
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