Murray conquers Wimbledon as ends 77-year British thirst

Andy Murray made tennis history on Sunday as he ended a 77-year men's title drought for Britain with his 6-4, 7-5, 6-4, defeat of Novak Djokovic to win the Wimbledon Championships, dpa reported.

It took Murray four match pints - plus three break points saved in a dramatic last game - to lift the nation with his victory.

Murray hugged his longtime rival after Djokovic fired into the net on a fourth match point, then fell to his knees and buried his head in his hands on the grass of the most iconic court in tennis.

Murray calmly climbed into the stands to thank his coaching team. Forgetting his mother Judy, he started to leave before rushing back to give her a hug.

A crowd of 15,000 on Centre Court, including British Prime Minister David Cameron, watched the home hero's triumph in three hours, nine minutes.

The success was the first for a British man at the home grand slam since Fred Perry won in 1936.

Murray came close in 2012, losing the final to Roger Federer before winning the US Open two months later for his trophy breakthrough at a major. In their only meeting on grass, Murray beat Djokovic in a semi-final at the London Olympics.

"This feels slightly different than last year, that was one of the toughest moments of my career," said Murray.

"To win today was unbelievable. We played such a tough match, there were so many long games. I don't know how I came through final game after those three match points, I'm just so glad to win.

"Novak will go down as a big fighter, he's come back so many times and he almost did it again today. I just managed to squeeze through in the end. I understand how much everyone here wanted to see a British winner, I really tried my best."


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