Tennis: Andy Murray and Laura Robson guarantee medal with victory over Germany in mixed doubles semi-final
Saturday 04 August 2012
Related articles
Andy Murray will play for two gold medals tomorrow after he and Laura Robson brilliantly won their mixed doubles semi-final against Germans Christopher Kas and Sabine Lisicki.
Murray was already assured of at least a silver medal in singles ahead of tomorrow's final against Roger Federer.
And now he will also have a doubles medal after he and Robson pulled off victory for Great Britain in a match tie-break, going through 6-1 6-7 (9/7) 10-7.
Not everyone would consider two mixed doubles matches in a day to be ideal preparation for a men's singles final against Federer, but Murray has loved the whole Olympic experience and playing in front of the noisy crowd.
The British pair began the day by defeating Australian pair Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Stosur 6-3 3-6 10-8 on Centre Court.
That meant they were guaranteed a shot at a medal tomorrow, but they wanted at least silver and came out firing on Court One.
Lisicki and Kas have both reached Wimbledon semi-finals, the former in singles and the latter in men's doubles, but they lost the first six points and were quickly 3-0 down.
Murray had to save two break points in the fifth game but that was a minor blip as the British pair promptly broke the Kas serve for the second time in the match and Robson served out the set.
The teenager was more than holding her own in high-quality company and played a big part as the pair broke the Kas serve once more to lead 2-1 in the second set.
Robson conceded her serve for the second time straight away but a third consecutive break followed and this time Murray held to put the home duo two games away from the final.
Robson was just starting to wobble a little, and an untimely double fault allowed the Germans to break back for 4-4, but the teenager saved a set point in her next service game to take the set into a tie-break.
It swung one way and then the other, with Kas and Lisicki turning a 3-0 deficit into a 6-3 lead only to see three more set points go begging.
Robson and Murray saved a fourth, too, but a fifth followed when the Scot missed a volley, slamming his racquet to the turf in frustration, and this time the Germans capitalised.
That meant yet another match tie-break for the British pair, their third in successive matches, and they made a decent start, but Kas and Lisicki were matching them point for point.
The crucial point came with Lisicki serving at 7-6 behind, a volley into the net giving the British duo a mini-break, and Robson won both her service points to earn them a terrific victory.
PA
Sport blogs
New day (slowly) rising – As Brasileirão gets underway, Brazilian football stumbles, rather than leaps into the future
The average Serie A crowd last year was 13,000 - comparable to Australia’s A-League.
by James Young
24 May 2013 04:31 PM
iBet: Mercedes and Hamilton to roar in Monaco
Monaco is a street circuit where driver ability is more important than anywhere else and if we take ...
by Gareth Purnell
24 May 2013 02:00 AM
On The Road at the Giro d’Italia: It sounds sadistic, but the team live for the mountain stages
Three weeks ago as I drove off the Eurostar, I remember thinking what a very long time it was until ...
by Martin Ayres
23 May 2013 05:29 PM
-
Why Manchester City were willing to fork out $500m on stake in MLS
-
Manchester City coach in waiting Manuel Pellegrini: Inside the mind of anti-Mancini
-
Champions League final: Biggest German invasion since the fifth century as Bayern Munich face Borussia Dortmund
-
Borussia Dortmund v Bayern Munich: 50 things you need to know about the Champions League final
-
Champions League Final: Can Jürgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund stop the Bayern Munich machine?
- 1 What, let gays get married? We must be bonkers
- 2 Rocky Horror star Tim Curry 'suffers major stroke'
- 3 Exclusive: How MI5 blackmails British Muslims
- 4 Lord of the Sings: Sir Christopher Lee, 91, to release heavy metal album
- 5 Exclusive: Woolwich killings suspect Michael Adebolajo was inspired by cleric banned from UK after urging followers to behead enemies of Islam
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
Visit York
Find out what The Independent's resident travel expert has to say about one of the most beautiful small cities in the world
Making reading fun for kids
Nook is donating eReaders to volunteers at high-need schools and participating in exclusive events throughout the campaign.
Introducing the 'Get Reading' campaign
Get the latest on The Evening Standard's campaign to get London's children reading.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Day In a Page
Johnny Marr talks relationships and reunions
In pictures: After the flood
Death becomes her: A very modern mortician
School of chop: Learning the art of butchery
The man who's eaten everywhere
A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?




Comments