Andy Murray could not have envisaged a better ending after suffering a heartbreaking loss to Roger Federer at Wimbledon three weeks ago. Nobody could have imagined a climax of such staggering proportions either.
To beat Federer, a person he had lost to in three Grand Slam finals, including Wimbledon last month, is quite an achievement; but to crush the greatest male player to ever grace the game, in straight sets 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 is the stuff of legends. Murray, at the centre court - Federer's backyard where he has won 7 titles - showed he has the talent and more importantly the mental make-up to challenge the top three and win Grand Slam titles.
This will and should be seen as the day when Murray finally turned into a winner on the big stage. Sure, people will say the Olympics are not that important and it is tantamount to winning an ATP title; but everybody who watched that match and had been hearing about how important a gold medal was to Federer, would know that it was so much more.
"He came, he won gold. I think this is how champions react," Federer, the 17-time Grand Slam champion said of Murray's performance.
"It's number one for me -- the biggest win of my life," Murray, who had to settle for silver in the mixed doubles after his emphatic singles victory, added.
"I have had a lot of tough losses in my career and this is the best way to come back from the Wimbledon final."
Murray had suffered Grand Slam defeats to Federer before, but the Wimbledon loss was different. In that match the Brit had shown up to a major final, and it was only the absolute brilliance and big-game experience of Federer that saw him claim his seventh Wimbledon crown. The reaction to the loss, far from being negative was entirely on a positive vein; people believed Murray would win a major title, now emphasized by the staggering victory on the same court against the same opponent.
You generally do not get second chances in sport; however, when you do, it is extremely important you grab it with both hands and make the most of it. Murray did exactly that and so much more. The 25-year-old showed he had stopped feeling sorry for himself, and had grown into a better player from the agonizing losses, thanks mainly to the impeccable guidance of coach and former great Ivan Lendl.
"Ivan told me after the Wimbledon final that he was really happy with the way I played the whole tournament," Murray said. "He's never been around a British player during Wimbledon, so he maybe didn't quite know what it was like. He was saying, 'I'll never play in a match under that much pressure again in my life'. So that's good news. I did feel much more relaxed going into today's match than I did going into the Wimbledon final.
"Having someone like Ivan around after that Wimbledon final was very important, as well, someone to talk to about the emotion, how it feels. He understands all of that. I spoke to him before today's match about the tactics, going over a little bit what happened at Wimbledon, used it in the right way instead of negatively, which in the past I've certainly done after a few of the Grand Slam finals.
"I've actually used it in the right way to become a better player. I hope that that showed today."
The capacity crowd at SW19 and his illustrious opponent will certainly agree to that.
