Luckily, we all saw Andy Murray end Britain's 77-year Wimbledon men's singles championship drought as he defeated Novak Djokovic in straight sets today, setting off wild celebrations all across the British Isles. To be fair, though, Scotland has the most right to party, as Murray hails from that corner of the union.
Some will argue that this is Murray's breakthrough at Wimbledon, but it actually happened during last year's Olympic Games in London when he knocked off Roger Federer in the gold medal match. Since then, Murray has won the U.S. Open (ending Britain's 76-year drought of men's Grand Slam singles titles) and reached the Australian Open finals before claiming Wimbledon.
Murray has been a different player since that run to Olympic glory. He has found that final gear that all great champions in any sport possess to get him over the hump. When the chips are down (as they were several times today), Murray battles back and wins crucial points.
It's the same transformation we've seen in multiple Grand Slam champions of the past, especially Andre Agassi. Beginning with his 1992 Wimbledon title and then ramping up with wins at the 1999 French and U.S. Opens, Agassi went from being the flashy tennis player with the long hair to a dominating presence on the world stage with no hair.
Being only 26 years old and of sound body, Murray stands a good chance of winning more Grand Slam titles. Roger Federer is getting older, Rafael Nadal is only dominant on clay surfaces and Murray just knocked off Djokovic in a Grand Slam final for the second time. Murray not only can compete with those three, he can beat them on a regular basis.
So, cheers to Andy Murray for ensuring that Britain's male tennis legacy didn't end with Fred Perry -- the one who claimed that country's previous Wimbledon title in 1936.
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