Murray extends Olympic farewell with doubles win

PARIS — Andy Murray continues to stave off his planned retirement from tennis as he and Team GB playing partner, Dan Evans, won their second-round match in the Paris Olympics men’s doubles tournament on Tuesday.

It sees the British pair advance to the quarterfinals where a win would guarantee them a chance at a medal.

The Scot’s final tennis match will come within the next week, having confirmed this will be his final tournament as a professional, although it hasn’t arrived just yet.

Evans and Murray earned a well-fought 6-3, 6-7(8), (11-9) victory over Belgian pair Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen in a showing that was much improved from their miraculous match tie breaker victory in the first round.

The Brits took an early lead in the first set by breaking their opponents’ serve at the first opportunity, notably through a super lob from Evans to the far right corner. However, Gille and Vliegen held their nerve in the second set and forced a nervy tie break.

At 6-5 down, Murray himself saved a set point by showing razor sharp reflexes to convert a volley at the net, but Gille and Vliegen persevered and won the set.

It sent the contest to a deciding match tie break – Murray and Evans’ second in so many matches after rescuing five match points last time out – and they produced some magic moments this time, too. Twice Murray’s career was hanging by a thread as the Belgians reached match point, but both times the British pair survived before taking it 11-9.

They will face either Team USA’s Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul or Dutch pair Robin Haase and Jean-Julien Rojer in the quarterfinals.

It would be a tall order to overcome the American duo, should they face them, but Murray is no stranger to Olympic success.

He is a two-time Olympic champion following gold medals in the men’s singles at both London 2012 and Rio 2016. He also has a mixed doubles silver medal from Rio alongside Laura Robson.