Andy Murray celebrated an epic five-set win over Matteo Berrettini at the Australian Open (Picture: Getty)
Andy Murray rolled back the years after surviving a stunning Matteo Berrettini comeback and winning an epic first round five-set marathon at the Australian Open.
Bidding to beat a top 20 player at a grand slam for the first time since his hip problems began in 2017, Murray won the opening two sets before Berrettini fought back to level in a dramatic fourth-set tie-break.
The Italian 13th seed created a match point in the 10th game of the deciding set but dumped a simple backhand into the net with the court wide open and Murray held on to force a deciding tie-break.
A gruelling first point won by the Scot set the tone and Murray, who moved superbly, was able to celebrate a stunning 6-3 6-3 4-6 6-7 (7) 7-6 (6) victory after four hours and 49 minutes.
While such matches would have usually been contested in later rounds in his heyday, this will surely mean almost as much four years after the tearful press conference at Melbourne Park that seemed to herald the end of his career.
Asked how he felt after securing the biggest win in the four years that have passed since he was almost forced into retirement, Murray said: ‘I’ll be feeling this this evening and tomorrow and now I’m just unbelievably happy and proud of myself.
‘I put a lot of work into the last few months with my team who are here to give me and opportunity to perform in stadiums like this and play against players like Matteo tonight.’
Andy Murray blew a two-set lead but eventually overcame Matteo Berrettini in a five set marathon (Picture: Getty)
Murray was protecting a proud record of never having gone 18 years without surrendering a two set lead to lose a match, while Berrettini had won his last nine tie breaks at the Australian Open.
Something had to give and the veteran Scot admitted he was probably better off not being aware of the statistics that might otherwise have been playing on his mind.
Matteo Berrettini more than played his part in a five-set marathon (Picture: Getty)
‘I didn’t know any of these stats which probably helped,’ he said. ‘It’s the first time I’ve played a 10 point tie breaker, it’s a bit different .
‘It feels like you’re still quite far away even when you’re 5-0 or 6-1 up. He came back strong and I got a bit lucky with the net chord. Some of the tennis at the end was really good, it felt like that anyway.
‘I didn’t know any of these stats which probably helped,’ he said. ‘It’s the first time I’ve played a 10 point tie breaker, it’s a bit different.
‘It feels like you’re still quite far away even when you’re 5-0 or 6-1 up. He came back strong and I got a bit lucky with the net chord. Some of the tennis at the end was really good, it felt that way.
‘He was serving unbelievable, he’s a brilliant competitor, he always fights right until the end and I did well to get through.’
MORE : When does Andy Murray play at the Australian Open 2023?
MORE : Matteo Berrettini standing in the way of a winning start for Andy Murray at Australian Open
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The five-times finalist survived a match point having raced into a two-set lead
