Murray's emotional sendoff among 2024's farewells
To mark the end of another thrilling season, ATPTour.com is unveiling our annual ‘Best Of’ series, which will reflect on the most intriguing rivalries, matches, comebacks, upsets and more.
Today we look back at some of the biggest names who called time on their playing careers this year. Andy Murray leads Part 1 of this story, with Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal to feature in Part 2 on Sunday.
Andy Murray
The Scot bowed out in the most Murray-esque manner imaginable. Playing doubles at the Paris Olympics, the two-time singles gold medalist teamed with Daniel Evans. The pair won its first match against Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori by saving five consecutive match points from a 4/9 deficit in the Match Tie-break to snatch victory.
Murray and Evans were not done with their dramatic comebacks. They extended the former World No. 1 Murray’s career further by surviving two match points against Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen in the second round before losing in the quarter-finals. After both wins, Murray celebrated as though he had just won the gold medal, final demonstrations of just how much the game always meant to the 46-time tour-level champion.
Against all odds, #SirAndy 😤@andy_murray pic.twitter.com/zKm0GUDJXO
— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 2, 2024
Murray spent 41 weeks as No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings, claimed three major titles and tallied 739 singles wins in his laudable career. One key turning point came in 2012, when he captured the Olympic gold medal on the Wimbledon lawns.
Later that summer he captured his first major title, the 2012 US Open, by defeating Novak Djokovic in a five-set final. The match lasted four hours, 54 minutes – tied for the second-longest US Open final in history.
The next year Murray ended Great Britain’s 77-year wait for a home men’s singles champion at Wimbledon. This was the day that the BBC said “turned Murray into a Wimbledon champion and a national treasure”. Winning Wimbledon was not the only thing Murray accomplished for Great Britain. In 2015, he propelled the British team to its first Davis Cup victory since 1936.
The 37-year-old will be remembered for a career full of historic achievements, which he accomplished against some of the best players in the history of tennis.
“I gave as much as I could to the career,” Murray said at the Paris Olympics. “There are obviously things that I look back on and wish that I could have done differently, but it’s been a tough time to win major titles in the sport with the players that were ahead of me. I’m proud of my achievements, my efforts and I’m looking forward to prolonged rest now.” Read Murray Longform Tribute.
[ATP APP]Steve Johnson
The California native Johnson established himself as a consistent force on the ATP Tour with his devastating forehand, lethal backhand slice and fighting spirit. Johnson turned pro in 2012 after leading the University of Southern California to four consecutive NCAA team titles and winning the singles crown twice. He completed his college career with 72 consecutive singles wins.
Johnson went on to claim four tour-level singles trophies and reach a career-high No. 21 in 2016. He teamed countryman Jack Sock at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where they captured the bronze medal. For five consecutive years from 2014-18, Johnson finished inside the year-end Top 50 and always proved a tough out for any opponent. He retired in front of friends and family in Indian Wells.
“As I sit here now very proud of what I accomplished, I felt like I did just about everything I could in my power to either rectify mistakes that I made, playing or all the things that go into playing tennis. I feel like I left no stone unturned. And for me, that’s the most important piece,” Johnson said.
“I don’t want to look back and have any regrets or wish I would have done X, Y and Z. So for me, I feel very proud of what I accomplished. To have the career I had, the accomplishments and everything is super fun to look back on. But knowing that my wife and girls may not ever remember me playing tennis, but they will [see those things], that means the most to me.” Read Johnson Retirement Feature.
Ivo Karlovic
Propelled by his 6’11” (2.11m) frame, Karlovic boasted one of the biggest serves in tennis history. The Croatian is second on the all-time Aces leaderboard, having struck 13,728 aces, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Only John Isner has hit more (Ace count has been kept since 1991).
Karlovic stepped away as an eight-time tour-level singles champion who ascended to a career-high No. 14 in 2008. At Wimbledon in 2003, Karlovic made his major debut and defeated then-defending champion Lleyton Hewitt en route to his lone Slam quarter-final.
Karlovic confirmed his retirement in February, having not competed since October 2021. “I’ve had a very gratifying, unorthodox and long career coming from extremely humble beginnings, especially for a tennis player,” Karlovic said. Read Karlovic’s ‘My Point’.
<img alt=”From left to right: Ivo Karlovic, John Millman, ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi, Joao Sousa and Dominic Thiem.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/11/15/19/06/nitto-atp-finals-2024-retirement-ceremony.jpg” />
From left to right: Ivo Karlovic, John Millman, ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi, Joao Sousa and Dominic Thiem at the 2024 Nitto ATP Finals. Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Joao Sousa
Sousa’s accomplishments made him a national icon in his home country Portugal. The 35-year-old is the highest-ranked Portuguese player in PIF ATP Rankings history (No. 28, 2016).
In 2013, Sousa became the first player from his country to win an ATP Tour title (Kuala Lumpur). He did not stop there. Sousa claimed four tour-level trophies and often came up against the best players in the sport, earning five Top 10 wins. He reached the fourth round at the 2018 US Open and 2019 Wimbledon. Sousa fittingly brought his career to a close in front of home fans in Estoril this year.
“I couldn’t ask for a better ending. I think that’s the best place I could ever ask for a career ending,” Sousa said “It was very special [winning here] in 2018, with all the crowd supporting throughout the whole week. So it was just amazing to feel the love and the support from my fans at home, of course, in Portugal.” Read Sousa Retirement Feature.
John Millman
From the highest of highs to the lowest of lows, Millman experienced a wide range of emotions during a 14-year professional career which ended at the Australian Open. The Australian’s storied journey featured one ATP Tour title, an upset against Roger Federer en route to the 2018 US Open quarter-finals and maximising every bit of his potential — even in the face of adversity, such as multiple shoulder surgeries.
“I hope people enjoyed the journey and saw that I left it all out there. If they resonate with that and that story, then I’ve done my job,” the former World No. 33 said. Read Millman Retirement Feature.
Federico Delbonis
Delbonis was a tricky opponent, using his left-handed game to great effect and catching fans’ attention with his unorthodox service motion and high ball toss. A two-time tour-level titlist, the Argentine reached a career-high No. 33 in the PIF ATP Rankings in 2016. He hung up his racquets in January.
“Today is the end of one of the most enriching journeys of my life,” Delbonis said. “It is the end of a stage of my life in which I learned to be a sportsman and a person. I had some unforgettable and unbeatable moments on and off the tennis court.” Read Delbonis Retirement Feature.
Ryan Harrison
Harrison’s game was as explosive as he was competitive. Harrison reached the Top 40 in the PIF ATP Rankings and also hit a doubles career-high No. 16. “I consider myself one of the luckiest people in the world to have had a dream and had the opportunity to live out that dream,” Harrison wrote in a retirement social media post in January.
In 2017, Harrison was playing the best tennis of his life. He won his lone ATP Tour singles title in Memphis and partnered Michael Venus to claim the Roland Garros doubles trophy. Harrison and Venus qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals that year and reached the semi-finals. Read Harrison Retirement Feature.
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