Murray faced his fifth defeat in a Melbourne final on Sunday after a tough few weeks, at the hands of Novak Djokovic - and rushed home to be a father soon.
Djokovic, who has been on fire the last fifteen months, beat World No. 2 Andy Murray at the Australian Open on Sunday with a performance of 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (3). The 28 year old Serb has now claimed his sixth Melbourne title, and his record ties with that of Australian Roy Emerson.
Murray's sportsman's spirit - and wit and grace, too - were both alive at the end of the nearly three-hour final. He congratulated rival Djokovic and his team, praising his steadiness. Apologizing for not having made it, the end of the match saw him reflecting humorously on last year. "I feel like I've been here before," he joked, referring to his last as the audience laughed.
Murray has been through a harrowing few weeks, and his heart has not necessarily been on the court. Not only is he expecting his first child due with wife Kim any day now, but his father in law, Nigel Sears collapsed on the court last Saturday. It happened during Ana Ivanovic's third round match, who Sears coaches. Murray was on court at the time too. The Scot had said earlier that had his wife gone into labor or her father had a major health issue, he would have flown back home.
The final started off weak for Murray and lasted 30 minutes. Djokovic played much like he had during semi-finals against Swiss Roger Federer. The second and third sets saw Murray putting up quite a fight as the two players exchanged regular baseline bashes. Murray later talked about how he had been close, expressing pride at the way he battled, and managed to generate chances for himself. He also thought he could've hit his forehand better.
The post-match press conference was very short as Murray rushed to get to the airport for his 1 a.m. flight to London. Before leaving, he acknowledged how his wife had handled things and thanked her for her support and for allowing him to play. "And finally to my wife Kim," Murray added. "You've been a legend the last two weeks. I'll be on the next flight home." Djokovic got in on the wishes, calling Murray a friend and a competitor and hoping he and Kim have a happy, healthy delivery.
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