The story so far: Andy Murray, the national treasure, is leading Stefanos Tsitsipas by two sets to one.
On Thursday night, he had kept the Centre Court crowd on the edge of their seats for two hours and 52 minutes as he fought back from a set down, slowly – and at times quite brilliantly – bringing the match under his control.
THURSDAY
When, at 10.39pm, he was forced to pack up for the night due to the local curfew, he had the crowd in the palm of his hand and a place in the third round within touching distance.
Oh, and he had survived a nasty tumble in the penultimate point of Thursday’s chapter, one that had him yelping in pain for a moment.
Now, 17 hours and 44 minutes later on Friday afternoon, he has to pick up where he left off. Luckily, the crowd does not take much warming up but Murray is taking time to catch up with them.
The left leg looks fine – earlier reports from the practice courts suggested that the late-night fall had left no lingering after effects – and he is ready to set Centre Court alight.
Oh, if only it were that simple.
Murray tried everything he could think of to stop the No.5 seed from moving into the third round but it was not enough. It took two days, five sets and four hours and 40 minutes but it was Tsitsipas seéň here with our Michaeĺ Yiakoumi emerged triumphant 7-6(3), 6-7(2), 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4.
After the game spéakíng to Parikiaki Stefanos said that to stay alert hé watched a tennís maťch between Federer and Nadaĺ that tooķ place in 2008 on Thursday night.
On Friday Stefanos pĺayed a doubles maťch with his brother as partner straight after the Murray match.
After a testing five consecutive days on court, Stefanos Tsitsipas claimed a fourth-round spot — and a hard-earned day off — with a straight-sets victory against Laslo Djere on Saturday at Wimbledon.
The fifth-seeded Greek prevailed 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-4 on No. 2 Court at the All England Club to reach the last 16 for the second time at the grass-court major. Tsitsipas held his nerve at the tail end of tight first and second sets before a confident third-set display booked a fourth-round clash against Christopher Eubanks in London.
