The past four years have been quite a heady ride for the No. 1 ranked men’s tennis player in the world. The year after claiming his first grand slam victory at the 2012 U.S. Open, Andy Murray became the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years when he ousted Novak Dyokovic in straight sets 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.
Murray won his second Wimbledon Championships last year by dispatching Canada’s Milos Raonic, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 (and judging from the above picture, he doesn’t appear to be inclined to relinquish his trophy any time soon). Later in the summer, Scotland’s sporting hero also repeated as Olympic champion in men’s singles in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Murray recently sat down with Graham Bensinger in a wide-ranging interview that covered everything from his funky fingernail, to moving to Barcelona on the advice of fellow tennis great Rafael Nadal.
BITTER BETTER BROTHER
Murray’s mother, the coach of the Scottish National Tennis Team, got him hooked on the sport from a young age while managing to keep it fun. An intense rivalry with his brother offered ongoing motivation to improve, but resulted in a destroyed fingernail after his first victory over his senior sibling.
SURVIVING DUNBLANE SCHOOL SHOOTING
Murray recalled the shooting at his grammar school when he was 8-years-old that took the lives of 16 students and a teacher, and explained why it’s still hard to address today.
RAFA LURES MURRAY TO SPAIN
When he was 15-years-old, Murray had a pivotal conversation with Rafael Nadal during a friendly racquetball match that convinced him to leave home and train in Barcelona, Spain.
LEBRON JAMES OF TENNIS
Murray compared the pressure he felt to win Wimbledon to the enormous expectations placed on LeBron James before he won his first NBA title.
“(I compared the pressure I felt) to someone like a LeBron James, who was the best player in the league, but hadn't won an NBA championship and every year that goes on the pressure builds more and more.”
REVENGE VS ROGER FEDERER
After losing to Roger Federer at the 2012 Wimbledon finals, Murray returned to the same venue a few months later and secured the Olympic gold medal in a rematch with the Swiss legend.
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