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Andy Murray's remarkable return as he fights back from the brink

On the 14th of January, cameras panned to his mother in the crowd as Andy Murray battled on in th...



Andy Murray's remarkable retur...
Other Sports

Andy Murray's remarkable return as he fights back from the brink

On the 14th of January, cameras panned to his mother in the crowd as Andy Murray battled on in the 5th set of his Australian Open encounter against Bautista Agut.

Judy Murray had tears in her eyes as she watched her youngest son attempt to win a match in which he had fought his way back into contention after being two sets down.

These tears weren't over the possibility of him bowing out of this Grand Slam tournament but rather the ending of his career.

It seemed the two time Wimbledon Champion's time was up as he could hardly walk as Agut took the final set 6-2.

The former world number one Scotland native had revealed before the match he would have to return to the operating table sooner rather than later to fix his stubbornly ailing hip.

He seemed to have come to terms with the reality, saying afterward:

“That was incredible. Thank you so much to everyone who came out tonight. Honestly, I’ve loved playing here over the years. It’s an amazing place to play tennis. If it was my last match, it was an amazing way to end."

“Maybe I’ll see you again. I’ll do everything possible to try. If I want to go again, I’ll need to have a big operation where there are no guarantees I will be able to come back. I will give it my best shot.”

A filmed tribute from several of Murray’s friends and rivals followed including Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic congratulating him on his great career and wishing him well.

He laughed as Caroline Wozniacki said to him "You always had the best jokes." 'Had' -past tense. Everyone seemed resigned to the fact the journey was over.

Murray's parents split up when he was 10 and he and his brother lived with their father. Murray has said the impact of this turbulence in his life is possibly the reason behind his competitive spirit.

This competitive spirit has shone beyond belief in the last five months.

Murray has fought back against the ultimate opposition, his own body.

The three-time grand slam champion has made a remarkable return to the competitive game. He's partnered up with Feliciano Lopez at Queen's Club where he'll play in this afternoon's final.

Murray has said he "didn't have high expectations" coming back. Perhaps he didn't, the very nature of his return is so impressive one wouldn't dream of it.

As fans watch on, expectations grow with every success.

The current world number 215 now has Wimbledon in his sights as people dare to dream that perhaps that video montage was perhaps premature.

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