2 Responses to wb13murray_verdasco

1. Voo de Mar says:

   July 5, 2024 at 3:19 pm

   Points won by each set: | 32-33, 20-29, 30-17, 35-27, 34-26 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   34 % Murray – 47 of 135
   32 % Verdasco – 48 of 148

   The second five-setter between them, and a similar progress to the first one with a reverse outcome though. The 30-year-old Verdasco [54] was unusually calm throughout the Wimbledon match. At the time he was already behind his prime, and the quarterfinal at Wimbledon meant his best result on grass, therefore he seemed like someone with the attitude ‘I’ve achieved more than I expected, I have nothing to lose, I simply should enjoy the moment’. The first two sets were very unfortunate for the heavy favorite Murray [2]. In the opener he wasted a mini set point at 4-all, and committed his first double fault on Verdasco’s first set point in the following game. In the 2nd set the Brit led 3:1* (30/0), but the Spaniard managed to win five straight games, and took Murray to deuces twice in the opening game of the set no. 3. Murray held, and finally he began to establish his superiority, nevertheless in the 4th set he had to escape from two break points at 0:1 and 2:3 before breaking at 3-all. In the non-deuce final set Verdasco led 4:3* (30/0) and 5:4, so he was four points away from a sensational victory, but Murray kept his composure and won the last three games easily, holding twice at ‘love’ – after the match point Verdasco asked for a challenge, and was joking when both players were standing at the net waiting for the confirmation of the linesman’s decision (photo). As many as four times they were caught at 5-all in the deciding set against each other, and Murray always dealt better with the tension. # He led in their H2H 13:1, yet Verdasco improved to 4-13 (counting their first meeting in a Challenger it’s 5-13) at the time when Murray was trying to rediscover his form with a metal hip.

   Serve & volley: Murray 2/2, Verdasco 1/2

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2. Voo de Mar says:

   July 6, 2024 at 11:30 am

   # Comparison of their 4 matches when there was 5-all in the decider:

   Dubai 2008 (2R): Murray d. Verdasco 6-3, 3-6, 7-6… 2 hours 24 minutes… 3 pts away
   London 2009 (rr): Murray d. Verdasco 6-4, 6-7, 7-6… 3 hours 0 minutes… 4 pts away
   Wimbledon 2013 (QF): Murray d. Verdasco 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-3, 7-5… 3 hours 27 minutes… 4 pts away
   Paris 2016 (2R): Murray d. Verdasco 6-3, 6-7, 7-5… 2 hours 29 minutes… 5 pts away

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