Emotional Andy Murray reveals family tragedy after epic Davis Cup win

Davis Cup
Andy Murray broke down after his Davis Cup match

An emotional Andy Murray could not hold back the tears as he came through an epic Davis Cup match against Leandro Riedi – and then revealed he played in the match despite tragedy hitting his family.

Murray missed the funeral of his Gran to represent Great Britain, which made his battling 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 6-4 win all the more remarkable.

It was not a vintage performance from Murray against a youthful opponent who was going for broke for most of the match, but his post-match interview shed light on the agonies he was going through.

“Today is a tough day for me,” he said, before passing as he tried to gather his thoughts.

“It’s my Gran’s funeral today. I’m sorry to my family that I am not able to be there… but Gran that one’s for you.”

The applause rippled around the OA Arena in Manchester as fans who had been entertained by a thrilling match were brought back down to earth by the revelation that Murray was playing through an emotional pain barrier.

This is not the first time Murray has shown his emotions on court, with his famous interview following his defeat in the 2012 Wimbledon final against Roger Federer showing his sensitive side.

Yet this outpouring was much more raw and personal and summed up the dedication this remarkable sportsman still has to tennis.

Even though he is not playing at his best, the 36-year-old two-time former Wimbledon champion continues to battle to find his best tennis and against a dangerous opponent in 21-year-old Riedi, he was pushed all the way.

The former world number one had only lost three of his previous 35 singles matches in the competition and never to a player ranked as low as world number 152 Riedi.

But the big-hitting 21-year-old produced a performance well above that and, after failing to take his chances in the opening set, Murray needed all his nous to grind out a tense victory in three hours and 10 minutes.

READ MORE: Andy Murray accepts his fate as Great Britain’s Davis Cup team go for glory

It was another demonstration that, for all his frustration at being unable to get back in the mix at grand slams, the competitive fire still burns brightly within Murray and to get over the line in an important match for his country undoubtedly meant a lot.

The 36-year-old said: “It’s obviously incredible to get through that one, it easily could have gone the other way. It was ridiculous the shots he was pulling off, amazing, amazing returning. I kept fighting and tried to stay focused and managed to turn it round.”

He went on to suggest playing Riedl was a test he was not expecting, as Switzerland gave one of their young guns a chance against one of the game’s greats.

“Incredible to get through that one, easily could’ve gone the other way,” added Murray.

“He was returning, it was ridiculous the shots he was pulling off. He made it really tough for me but I just kept fighting and tried to stay focussed and managed to turn it around.

“It’s difficult because we were expecting (Dominic) Stricker to play, the left hander and I’ve been preparing for that and practicing and then you find out an hour before it was him and I’d never played him before or practiced with him.

“I knew he was a shot maker but he sustained it for a really long time today and I had to make some adjustments during the match. The team help with that as well so thanks to them for that.”

This was another example of Murray’s remarkable passion to play the sport he loves and give his all to the British cause.

Understandably, looked emotionally drained at the end and there is a chance that this may have been his last Davis Cup match.

If that is the case, his Gran would be very proud of him.

Andy Murray

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