With experienced efficiency Andy Murray powered to victory to claim his second Wimbledon singles title and ensure that for only the second time in 80 years a British man would raise the coveted silver-gilt trophy.
The 6ft 3in Scot triumphed over the 6ft 5in Canadian Milos Raonic, his championship point in a third set tie-break detonating deafening cheers and applause in Centre Court and in living rooms, clubs and pubs across the UK.
Murray fist pumped the air in delight and threw his racket up, before slumping into his courtside chair and sobbing into his towel.
“I’ve had some great moments here and some tough losses and obviously the win is extra special because of the tough losses. So I’m proud to have my hands on the trophy again,” he said on Sunday.
He added: “Last time I was so relieved I felt – I was very nervous as well today – but just so much stress and pressure and didn’t really get the chance to enjoy it as much, so I will make sure I enjoy this one tonight for sure.”
He thanked the crowd, which included the prime minister, David Cameron. “I think playing in a Wimbledon final is tough, but I certainly wouldn’t like to be the prime minister. It’s an impossible job,” he said, as some parts of the crowd booed at the mention of Cameron.
Further cementing his place in British sporting history, Murray, 29, time and again calmly swatted back the 25-year-old Canadian’s high-velocity serve, which hit an express train peak of 147mph at 4-4 in the second set, the fastest serve of the championships. The whole match lasted two hours and 48 minutes.
“I did the best I could,” said Raonic after his defeat. “I’m going to work on everything to win a grand slam. I’m not going to leave any stone unturned.”
With Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer both fallen, bookmakers were set to clean up the moment the world No 2 and No 2 seed at the championships stepped on to Centre Court for his 11th grand slam final as the hot favourite, with odds of 2-7 over Raonic’s 3-1.
Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Tim Henman said Murray had come to the final with a “quiet confidence”. Henman said he had texted Murray on Sunday morning to wish him luck, and received a text back saying “I’ve got a good feeling about this” with a little fist bump emoji.
Murray will now pocket £2m in prize money as champion – a Wimbledon record – about £87,000 for each of the 23 sets it took him to claim the title. The Brexit effect has seen the dollar equivalent of the prize money drop $380,000 to $2.59m from $2.97m five days ago, according to Bloomberg.
Overall, it was the best British performance at any Wimbledon championships since 1937, with several titles lifted. Gordon Reid, 24, from Dumbarton, claimed the inaugural wheelchair men’s singles title to add to the wheelchair men’s doubles he took on Saturday with Norfolk’s Alfie Hewett, 18, while Jordanne Whiley, 24, from Halesowen, West Midlands, won the women’s wheelchair doubles with Japanese partner Yui Kamiji.
Even away from SW19, fortune was smiling on Britain as in Formula One as Lewis Hamilton delighted fans at Silverstone by completing a hat-trick of consecutive victories at the British grand prix.
For the first time in a grand slam final, Murray was “against someone that isn’t Roger or Novak”. Some Centre Court fans left no doubt about their allegiance, decked out in union flag outfits and tartan hats. Sir Cliff Richard, a perennial Wimbledon-goer, wore a tartan suit.
Buoyed by the cheering crowd, Murray earned the first break of serve at 4-3, then went on to take the first set 6-4 in 41 minutes. He took the second and third 7-6 on tie-breaks.
Raonic, the No 6 seed, made history as the first Canadian male singles player to reach a grand slam final, and collects £1m in prize money.
A large contingent of royals turned out to cheer on Murray, headed by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and joined by Cameron, London mayor Sadiq Khan, and Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, who resisted the temptation to emulate her predecessor Alex Salmond and unfurl a saltire in the royal box.
Actors Benedict Cumberbatch, Bradley Cooper and Hugh Grant joined tennis legends including Boris Becker, Björn Borg, Stefan Edberg, Chris Evert and Roy Emerson.
Perhaps in deference to Raonic’s family’s roots, among the guests was the 80-year-old Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia.
The result comprehensively sealed “the Lendl effect” theory, becoming the 12th successive win since Murray reunited with his Czech-born coach Ivan Lendl on the eve of Queens.
Having sat stony-faced throughout, Lendl’s visage finally softened into something approaching a smile as Murray, asked to described his coach, told the crowd: “He’s just lucky.”
Fans had queued overnight and sprinted through morning drizzle when the gates opened to claim a coveted spot on Henman Hill – the incline inside the All-England Club where fans without Centre Court tickets watch on a giant screen. Sun broke through as the players entered Centre Court.
There had been an air of quiet confidence right from the start among fans. Draped in the Guernsey flag, Channel Islanders Margaret Poidevin, 65, and Jan Yabsley, 52, spread out their blanket, cracked open the champagne and put out the strawberries in anticipation. “I’m pretty confident Murray will win. He’s playing very well this year,” said Poidevin. “He’s not the underdog so there is more pressure on him to do well. It’s a good job Federer is not playing as my loyalties would have been very torn,” she admitted. Yabsley added: “There is definitely more pressure on Andy. I’ll be really sad for him if he loses.”
There was no doubting the loyalties of Jill Thomson, 27, an environmental campaigner originally from Edinburgh, and friend Lizzie Edwards, 25, originally from Dumfries, both now living in London and sporting blue and white flags on their cheeks, who had camped out overnight to get tickets.
“I’m confident Murray will win,” said Thomson, “but because he has done it before, maybe that adds greater pressure.” Edwards, a Labour party parliamentary researcher, was looking forward to some drama away from the party’s leadership battle. “It’s very nice to be here, away from the madness,” she said. “Everybody is Scottish today.”
Later Murray chatted to the Cambridges, telling them that his five-month-old daughter, Sophia, had slept through for the past three nights. “You can relax with your family now,” the duchess told him, after congratulating him on “a great game”.
One of the first things the newly crowned king of SW19 did after the match was take an ice bath – still clutching his trophy.
Murray believes he is playing the best tennis of his career and plans to win many more. “ I still feel my best tennis is ahead of me”, he said.
As the crowd celebrated on Henman Hill, Murray fans suggested it should be officially renamed Murray Mound in honour of the Scot who has cemented his place firmly in the affections of the nation. However, four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist Henman has previously indicated his unwillingness to relinquish sovereignty, once joking: “[Murray] can win all those grand slams he’s going to win, but I’m keeping my hill.”
