Wimbledon 2015: Jamie Murray turns career around after finding perfect partner John Peers

Murray and Peers take on Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau in Doubles final

Glenn Moore
Friday 10 July 2015 21:51 BST
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Jamie Murray steps out of his little brother’s shadow this afternoon when he plays in the men’s doubles final. Murray, the elder by 15 months, is seeking his second Grand Slam title after winning the mixed doubles with Jelena Jankovic here eight years ago.

He and his Australian partner John Peers will follow the women’s singles final on to Centre Court and face Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau, a Dutch-Romanian partnership.

For Murray it is an occasion he thought had passed him by. Now 29, he had considered packing it in when he teamed up with Peers in February 2013. A highly rated junior, his singles career had gone nowhere, peaking at 834 in the world, and his doubles career was falling away. After that initial glory in 2007, and spells of success with Eric Butorac and brother Andy, he had gone from being ranked 23rd in doubles to 135th. He had tried a string of partners, none with any great success.

Then he paired with Peers. Within months they had beaten the usually all-conquering Bryan brothers and knew they had a chance. “I think that was probably going to be my last kind of effort to really try to get back,” he said. “The previous two years I played with loads of different people and I wasn’t really enjoying it.

“The opportunity came up to try to make something happen with John. Thankfully, the hard work we’ve put in is paying off. Centre Court again in the Wimbledon final – for all the doubles players, that’s what we’re playing for, a men’s doubles Grand Slam final. We’re going to try to make the most of it.”

Jamie Murray plays in the men’s doubles final tomorrow

Murray and Peers are seeded 13, Rojer (a Miami neighbour of Andy Murray, and a guest at his wedding this year) and Tecau are seeded fourth. But Todd Woodbridge, nine-times Wimbledon men’s doubles champion, said: “The way that they’ve been playing, and looking at how they’ve played on grass before, Jamie and John are the favourites. I think their patterns of play are suited to the match-up. Jamie’s previous experience of winning a mixed doubles final is going to be crucial, that’s what could help John across the line.”

Murray is not the only Briton doing well in doubles. Unseeded pair Anna Brogan, another Scot, and Nottinghamshire’s Freya Christie, both 17, reached the semi-finals of the girls’ doubles yesterday, beating sixth seeds Jill Teichmann and Shilin Xu in straight sets.

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