Proud Murray is back with ‘one of my biggest wins’

AN emotional Andy Murray claimed his first ATP Tour title for more than two and a half years at the European Open in Antwerp.

In just his sixth singles tournament since returning from a hip resurfacing operation in January, Murray had significantly exceeded expectations by making it all the way to the final.

There he faced his old rival Stan Wawrinka, who was in the ascendancy for the vast majority of the match. But Murray dug in superbly, saving eight of the 12 break points he faced, including several at crucial times, and battled to a 3-6 6-4 6-4 victory.

The last time he lifted silverware in singles came in Dubai in March2017,soitwasnosurprise that the tears quickly flowed.

Murray said: “Obviously it means a lot, the last few years have been extremely difficult, both me and Stan have had a lot of injury problems the last couple of years.

“It’s amazing to be back playing him in a final. I think it was a great match, Stan was playing unbelievable, hitting winners from all over the court.

“I just managed to hang in a bit at the end of the second set and the third set was extremely close again. I didn’t expect to be in this position so I’m very happy.

“This is one of the biggest wins that I’ve had after everything so I’m very proud.”

It was fitting that these two men should be facing each other given it was their gruelling French Open semi-final two years ago that exacerbated physical issues for both.

Murray spent the next 18 months trying to find a solution to his hip problems that would enable him to live without pain, while Wawrinka underwent two knee operations.

The 34-year-old is further down the comeback trail than Murray, but it is only this season that he has really returned to something like his old form, with his ranking dropping outside 200 last summer. It is now