Wimbledon 2012: Andy Murray beats Tsonga to become first Briton in the final for 74 years

Wimbledon 2012: Andy Murray beats Tsonga to become first Briton in the final for 74 years

• Andy Murray points to the sky after winning won the fourth set 7-5
• It books his place in Sunday's final after seeing off Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
• Murray was cheered on by his girlfriend Kim Sears and mother Judy
  
• He will play Roger Federer, who beat reigning champion Novak Djokovic
• The 25-year-old Murray had lost the semi-final the last three years in a row
• Murray describes Sunday's final against Federer 'One of the biggest matches of my life'
• Tennis fan Kate Middleton will watch final from Royal Box - but William has a 'prior commitment'
  

By Emily Andrews and David Wilkes

PUBLISHED: 09:30 EST, 6 July 2012 | UPDATED: 16:45 EST, 6 July 2012

Oh, the ecstasy. Andy Murray has done it. Finally. At last.

He stormed into the Wimbledon final for the first time yesterday amid scenes of wild jubilation.

The nation has waited 74 years for a British finalist in the men’s singles â€" and now we must wait again to see if he can beat Roger Federer tomorrow.

Scroll down for video

Thank you! Andy Murray celebrates defeating France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga by pointing to the sky - as the fans go wild behind him

Jubilation: Andy's girlfriend Kim Sears, pictured bottom, second left, mother Judy Murray, bottom, second right, look joyous after Andy's win, whilst coach Ivan Lendl, bottom right, is a bit more reserved

Delight: Kim Sears, Andy's girlfriend can't hide here delight after the Scot won his semi-final, and then it seems the moment becomes as emotional for her as it was for him

Andy Murray will now face tennis legend Roger Federer in tomorrow's final

Murray shed tears of joy after winning a nail-biting semi-final that left fans on the edge of their seats.

On Centre Court â€" all too often the graveyard of his and other British players’ ambitions â€" he wrote himself into the history books by beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in four sets.

It was in 1938 that a Briton, Bunny Austin, last made it to the men’s final at Wimbledon. Eleven others have fallen at the semi-final stage since then, with Murray having lost in that round for the last three years on the trot.

Now the nation awaits excitedly to see if the 25-year-old Scot can be its first champion since Fred Perry 1936. Record television audiences are expected and Britain will come to a standstill when he faces six-times Wimbledon champion Federer.

Surreal: Murray struggles to keep his emotions in check after his momentous victory

Get in there: Spectators on 'Murray Mount' celebrate Britain's Andy Murray's victory over France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Murray, who led the semi by two sets to love then faced a tough fightback from his French opponent before eventual triumph, described his feelings at reaching the final as ‘a bit of relief, excitement’.

‘It’s tough to explain,’ he said. ‘It was such a close match in the last two sets. I’m happy to be through.’

If Murray wins the final, he will, in this the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year, also become the first British man or woman to win a Wimbledon singles title since Virginia Wade â€" who managed it in the Silver Jubilee year of 1977.

The Queen has been following Murray’s run to the final, but Buckingham Palace said last night she will not be able to attend the final because of ‘long-standing private engagements' this weekend.

Nice touch: Murray embraces Tsonga  after his men's singles semi-final victory after mother Judy Murray, right, led the celebrations

The Duchess of Cambridge will be in the royal box tomorrow, St James’s Palace sources told the Daily Mail, but her husband Prince William has ‘prior private commitments’.

David Cameron wished Murray good luck as it was announced No 10 will fly the Saltire alongside the Union Jack tomorrow in support of him.

The Prime Minister said: ‘It is great news that we have our first home-grown men’s finalist at Wimbledon for over 70 years, especially in this exciting Olympics year when the eyes of the world are on the UK. I’ll be watching the final and like the rest of the country, will be getting right behind Andy Murray. I wish him the best of luck.’

Yesterday Murray was watched from the royal box by Prince Andrew â€" who left ten minutes before the end â€" Kylie Minogue and Sir David Frost. More than ten million watched on television.

Murray’s mother Judy and girlfriend Kim Sears saw every second from the players’ box. Miss Sears cried when he won; Mrs Murray hugged everyone in sight, including her ex-husband  Willie.

How the semi-final was won - Murray triumphs in Tsonga test to reach Wimbledon final

Well played: Andy Murray is congratulated by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (left)

Flying the flag: Andy Murray reacts to breaking the serve of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the fourth set

Focused: Andy Murray hits a return during the first set of his semi-final as he attempts to become the first British man to get to the final since 1938

Ouch: Tsonga is on the floor after being hit in the groin

Murray in a hurry: Andy Murray plays a forehand shot as he races into a two sets lead in his semi-final

Full stretch: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga attempts to reach the ball as he loses the first set against Murray 6-4

The precise moment of victory came at 6.49pm, after two hours and 47 minutes of play. And having waited for so many years, it seemed almost appropriate that we had to wait for a few extra seconds for confirmation that Murray’s winning shot was in â€" by 14 millimetres, according  to the Hawk-Eye system â€" after a line judge called it out.

After the customary handshake with his defeated opponent, Murray walked back to the centre of the court to perform his now-customary routine of gazing up into the sky, raising both index fingers and waggling them.

The player has refused to explain what the gesture means, saying it is personal to him.

If he wins tomorrow he will collect a cheque for £1,150,000. Meanwhile, tickets for the final were yesterday being offered at up to £13,000 each.

I WAITED FOR THE TANTRUM... BUT THIS IS A NEW ANDY

By Amanda Platell

From the moment Andy Murray walked on to Centre Court yesterday, he was a different man.

Gone were the horrible whiskers and the unkempt hair. And as we were to discover from his incredible victory against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, that wasn’t the only thing that had changed. Also gone was the irascible, immature wild man of British tennis.

On the edge of her seat: Murray's girlfriend Kim Sears gasps as Tsonga gets a ball in the groin (left) and cheering as Murray wins a point

Tennis ace: Andy Murray returns a shot as he races into a two set lead in just one hour and 10 minutes

Cheering on Murray: The crowds on 'Murray Mount' watching the semi-final match

Tension mounts: A ball girl runs with a towel towards Andy Murray

Strong support: Andy Murray fans watch their man in action from Murray Mount outside Court Number One at Wimbledon

In his place was a disciplined, determined young sportsman who performed like a worthy winner.
I kept waiting for his composure to break, for the ‘real’ Andy Murray to emerge, but it never did.

Whether landing an ace or failing a difficult return of serve, he got on with the game, no rage, no shouting, no tantrums.

1936 AND ALL THAT

The last time a British player won the Wimbledon men’s singles, Stanley Baldwin was Prime Minister, the average house cost £550, and our current Queen was the ten-year-old Princess Elizabeth.

The year’s most popular song was Bing Crosby’s Pennies From Heaven, while the novel Gone With The Wind caused a publishing sensation, selling 50,000 copies in a single day.

The price of a loaf was 7.5d (3p) a newspaper cost 1d-2d (less than 1p) and a pint of milk cost 2d. In November that year, the BBC launched its first regular televised broadcasts from Alex andra Palace, London.

In international terms, 1936 was significant for the wrong reasons. Hitler formed an alliance with Mussolini, while the Spanish Civil War began.

It was also a significant year for the Royal Family.

After the death of 70-year-old George V, his son Edward VIII ascended the throne aged 41.

But the new king caused a constitutional crisis when he abdicated to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson.

And for the first time in his tennis career, he had the whole of the nation behind him.  Not just because he was on winning form, but because he behaved like a gentleman and a champion, someone we could support and believe in.

I’ve lost count of the times I’ve written about Murray and there has rarely been a kind word.

Like many people I felt myself torn â€" longing for a home-grown tennis star to triumph at Wimbledon, but repulsed by the uncontrolled, ungracious, sullen young man who greeted victory or defeat with the same primal scream.

And if his behaviour on court was obnoxious, then off court he was charmless, so ungentlemanly â€" the very opposite of the attributes that made Tim Henman so popular, despite his lesser ability. And so â€" like many, I suspect â€" I was always secretly rather glad when Murray lost.

That was until this past fortnight. For even at the beginning of this year’s Wimbledon, it was clea r something had changed. Yes, Murray was still sporting that horrible bum-fluff on his chin, but his demeanour was different. He was courteous in interviews, generous to players he defeated and modest about his  achievements.

And watching behind-the-scenes footage of him training, going through his paces with new coach Ivan Lendl, you could see there was a new composure too.

Lendl has always been a favourite of mine â€" a hero of Centre Court for many years â€" and I suspect he is the one we can thank for Murray’s transformation. It may have seemed an odd pairing at first, but they had much in common.

Close encounter: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga hits a forehand return as he narrowly loses the first set to Andy Murray

Fallen: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga crumples on the floor as he tries to return a shot from Murray

Physically both men were similar: both tall, wiry, fast around the court. What they lacked in strength they made up for in speed. Both, too, had dominating mothers who had been professional tennis players and tried to control their son’s careers.

ROGER FEDERER  V  ANDY MURRAY

 7       Head-to-head       8

30               Age               25

Birthplace
Basel, Switzerland     Dunblane, Scotland

6'1"          Height             6'3"

187lbs (85 kg)   Weight    185lbs (84 kg)

1998      Turned Pro      2005 

39/6    Year Won/Lost    26/9

 846/192   Career Won/Lost    349/116    

74       Career Titles       22

£46m   Career Prize Money   £13.3m

Both men had suffered trauma in their childhoods â€" Lendl fleeing communist oppression before finally becoming an American citizen, Murray haunted by the horrors of Dunblane when Thomas Hamilton opened fire, massacring 16 pupils and one teacher at his primary school. Both were late starters.

Lendl did not win his first Grand Slam until he was 24 when he won the French Open, before going on to win another seven Grand Slam titles.

And like Murray, Lendl was never one for the celebrity circuit, shying away from publicity.

Yet he had the one crucial ingredient that Murray lacked: an ability to channel his aggression into his game.

And in his young protege, the old champion recognised the incredible talent of a young man who did not lack courage but was flawed in character.

But if it is Lendl who can take much of the credit for taming Murray, then we must also pay tribute to the player’s maturity in recognising he needed to change â€" and for heeding Lendl’s wise counsel.

That new maturity was never more evident than at the very end of yesterday’s game, when Murray’s patience was tested to the limit.

Blue skies: Andy Murray reaches for a forehand shot on Centre Court yesterday

Hometown support: Fans in Dunblane, where Murray grew up, watch his semi-final clash in a pub yesterday afternoon

His final shot was called out. Murray challenged the call and  had to wait agonising seconds until Hawk-Eye showed that the ball had clipped the line and he’d done it. He was in the finals.

In years gone by, Murray would have fallen to his knees and screamed to the sky. Yesterday he simply closed his eyes, wiped away a tear, clenched his fists and raised two fingers to the heavens. When asked what the gesture meant, he simply said: ‘I’ll keep that to myself.’

Trying to describe how he felt, Murray said: ‘Relief, excitement, I’m just happy to be through.’

And a nation is happy for him, not so much for the fact that he is the first Brit in 74 years to get through to the finals, but because whether he wins or loses tomorrow, he has become a champion we can all be proud of.

Scottish army: Murray fans watching Andy Murray in action on the big screen at Wimbledon

OUR LAST FINAL HERO: A TENNIS LEGEND WITH MOVIE STAR LOOKS

Bunny Austin: Won a £10 gift voucher as 1938 runner up

The last British tennis player to walk on to Centre Court in a Wimbledon men's final - in 1938 - was Henry Wilfred Austin popularly known to tennis fans as 'Bunny' (the nickname came from a rabbit in a comic strip called Wilfred).

Bunny Austin, who was also the last British player to win the Queen's tournament before Murray did so three years ago, is one of the greatest British tennis heroes of all time.

One of the first players ever to appear in shorts, he had movie star looks and a movie star wife, Phyllis Konstam, one of Alfred Hitchcock's most beautiful leading ladies.

Austin's fame in the 1930s was comparable with that of David Beckham today.

A friend of the novelist Daphne du Maurier, he played tennis with Charlie Chaplin and knew Queen Mary and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

From 1933, alongside Fred Perry, he was part of the British team that won the Davis Cup for four years in succession, inaugurating a golden age for British tennis.

After losing the 1938 final to the Californian Donald Budge, Bunny retired from tennis and left Britain to tour the U.S. lecturing on Christianity and pacifism.

In the summer of 2000, Austin made a nostalgic return to Centre Court for the Millennium parade of past champions.

Less than two months later, on August 26, 2000, his 94th birthday, he died peacefully in his sleep at Woodcote Grove House nursing home in Coulsdon, Surrey.

If Andy Murray wins the Wimbledon crown, he will receive more than £1million in prize money.

All Austin received for being the runner- up in the 1938 final was a £10 gift voucher from the jeweller's Mappin and Webb.

Proud mother: Judy Murray watches her son in against Tsonga with his coaching team on Centre Court yesterday afternoon

Battle: Andy Murray attempts to make history by becoming the first British man in a Wimbledon final since 1938 as he steps out onto Centre Court with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Determination: Andy Murray, 25, has lost in the semi-finals for the last three years in a row

Andy Murray's girlfriend Kim Sears as the British star wins the first set

Blue-sky thinking: After Federer and Djokovic slugged it out under the roof, it was opened for Murray's match as the sun broke through

Committed supporters: Tennis fans brave the rain on Murray Mount as Andy Murray prepares to take on Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as he battles for a place in the final

Royal Box: Kylie Minogue and Andres Velencoso watch the men's semi-finals at Wimbledon this afternoon

Victor: Roger Federer,  left, this afternoon beat reigning Wimbledon champion Novak Djkovic, right, to book a place in tomorrow's final

Sir David Frost takes his seat ahead of the first semi-final between Federer and Djokovic

Sporting greats: Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, with his wife Anjali (right) took his seat behind Rod Laver

Andy view: The Duke of York (left) was in the Royal Box to enjoy men's semi-final day

Eyes on the prize: Kylie Minogue took a break from watching the tennis to share a private moment with Andres Velencoso

Legend: Four times Wimbledon champion Rod Laver enjoyed the game from the royal box

• Bi-polar woman, 20, kills herself inside police car with the...
• A very sensible girl: Meet the 14-year-old who unlike her...
• Nine-month-old dies after 'babysitters injected his 17lb...
• Scientologists urge followers to 'take action' as Katie...
• Don't wipe out the masterpiece! Teacher makes 25-minute...
• Bed of shame: Geordie Shore star blamed for 'sickening'...
• The moment an American helicopter strike blasts an Afghan...
• Mystery of missing wife of Scientology leader: Woman who...
• 'I look like a monster': Mother sues unlicensed dentist...
• First Al, now Tipper! Both Gores now dating again after...
• After floods, firestorms and tornadoes now DROUGHT sweeps...
• The President and the orphan: Poignant picture captures...

Share this article: