Murray outlasts Potro to pocket tennis gold

The world number two and his Argentine opponent shared a long hug at the net, with both man trying to hold back the tears, after a punishing, see-sawing, four-hour contest played out in front of a boisterous crowd at the Olympic Tennis Centre. 

Murray’s consistency proved decisive. He was able to wear down Del Potro’s weaker backhand and frequently drew the fatigued Argentine into the net with deftly placed drop shots as the contest wore on.

Del Potro served for the fourth set at 5-4 but Murray broke the Argentine in consecutive games to claim the match, his 18th straight victory following his second Wimbledon title in July. 

The 29-year-old Scot, winner of three grand slams, called the Rio encounter “one of the hardest matches I’ve had to play for a big title.” 

“There were so many ups and downs in the match... this has been much harder than London,” he told reporters in reference to his gold medal win four years ago. 

“I was tremendously tired. It was the crowd that made me keep running.” 

Japan’s Kei Nishikori secured a bronze medal in Rio by beating Nadal 6-2 6-7(1) 6-3 on Sunday.