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ATPWorldTour.com previews the semi-final match in the bottom half of the Wimbledon draw featuring Roger Federer and Andy Murray
[2] Roger Federer (SUI) vs. [3] Andy Murray (GBR)
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With Roger Federer and Andy Murray poised to meet for 24th time in the Wimbledon semi-finals on Friday, memories are surfacing of their two career-defining matches from the summer of 2012.
The two have, of course, met across the net multiple times in the past three years, but those two matches at the All England Club – in the final of The Championships and the Gold Medal match at the London Olympics – proved to be historic moments for both players.
It would end as a year to remember for Murray, but the Scot was left in tears on Centre Court in June as he was subject to a four-set defeat against Federer in his first Wimbledon final. It was Federer’s 17th Grand Slam championship and seventh triumph at SW19.
But they were tears of joy for the Dunblane native a month later as he cruised to a straight-sets victory over Federer to claim the Gold Medal at the London 2012 Olympics. By the close of the summer, the Scot had finally clinched his first Grand Slam title with victory over Novak Djokovic at the US Open.
"Winning at the Olympics is still one of the best couple of weeks in my career," said Murray. "It's something I'll remember forever. It was special for a number of reasons, mainly because I will never get the opportunity to play at a home Olympics again.
"After what had happened in the Wimbledon final a few weeks before, then to play against the same opponent in the final of the Olympics and win, it was a big turning point in my career, for sure."
Federer remembered, “[In the Wimbledon final] there was a lot on the line with Andy. I think he was going for his first Wimbledon in 2012. So obviously it was always going to be tough. He had lost some majors before that. But I knew it was going to be difficult for me, too, because we were both playing very well. Very much at home on Centre Court, on grass. We both play very well.
“Then the Olympics was just a different vibe altogether. It was I guess tougher to make the finals because it was best of three, not best of five getting to the finals. Once there, with the epic I had against del Potro, I was just a bit weathered from that match, but very relieved that I was going to make a medal for Switzerland. I thought Andy played as good of a final as you can play.”
The pair’s last meeting was a remarkably one-sided affair in the round robin stages of the 2014 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – a match Federer won for the loss of just one game. But while some in Murray’s camp were concerned by the scoreline, the Scot himself was able to put the loss into perspective, having coming into the Final Showdown on a tear of winning three titles in five tournaments.
“I was actually quite calm after that match,” said Murray. “But I kind of looked at the few weeks before then, the matches also that I played at The O2, the matches I played against Novak over that period as well, kind of assessed it and said, ‘Where am I going wrong against the top guys and what is it that I need to do to get back to that level competing with them?’ I dealt with it that way and tried to be rational about it.”
Both Murray and Federer come into Friday’s semi-final on winning runs on the grass, having won the Queen’s Club and Halle titles respectively in the weeks leading into The Championships. The 2013 Wimbledon champion, Murray, is bidding to reach his ninth Grand Slam final, but to do so, he will need to hand Federer his first defeat in 10 Wimbledon semi-finals.
“It's very impressive that he's managed to stay at the top of the game for so long, considering how long he's been at the top of the game for and how many matches he's played,” said Murray. “It's significantly more than a lot of the guys that have been at the top of the game for a long time. I mean, he's won over 1,000 matches and played over 1,200 matches. That's a lot of tennis.”
“I just hope the crowd gets into it and enjoys a good match and that we can play well,” said Federer, who is hoping to reach his 26th Grand Slam final. “I have received a lot of crowd support over the years, and so has Andy.
“I've always enjoyed playing here, even against Andy, of course,” continued the Basel native. “He came through [the draw] convincingly again, so he must be playing well. Plus he won Queen's. He's in full flight right now.”