Olympic Men's Tennis 2016: Final Schedule After Semifinal Results
The final day of tennis at the 2016 Olympics will see Andy Murray attempt to defend his crown from 2012 against Juan Martin del Potro to determine who will walk away from Rio de Janeiro with a gold medal.
Murray had little trouble defeating Kei Nishikori 6-1, 6-4 in the first semifinal match Saturday. It was an excellent return to form for the two-time Wimbledon champion after he needed three sets in his previous two matches (including a tiebreaker against Steve Johnson) to reach this point.
Del Potro engaged in an epic battle with Rafael Nadal that went more than three hours and required a third-set tiebreaker before he was able to put away the Spanish star 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) and secure his first shot at an Olympic gold medal four years after winning a bronze.
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Tennis Men's Final Schedule
| Sunday, August 14 | Andy Murray vs. Juan Martin Del Potro | Approx. 3 p.m. | Bravo | NBCOlympics.com |
Gold-Medal Match Prediction
In terms of having an edge in stamina, Murray should be fresher than Del Potro on Sunday.
Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated broke down how substantial the time difference was between Murray's win over Nishikori compared to where the other semifinal between Nadal and Del Potro was at:
Murray noted the emotional pressure he's been under has been overwhelming of late (via NBC Olympics):
This has been the best year of his career, even surpassing 2012, when he won the gold medal and U.S. Open, and 2013, when he captured his first Wimbledon title. The consistent level of play from event to event makes this his best season as a professional.
The last tournament Murray entered in which he didn't at least make the final was the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in April when he lost a semifinal to Nadal.
The ease with which he dispatched Nishikori—who was seeded fourth in the Olympics and is the seventh-ranked player in the ATP rankings—was alarming. He took 28 of 42 points in the first set and broke Nishikori's serve twice.
Murray and Del Potro do have some history together, having met seven times previously. Murray holds a 5-2 advantage in the series, though they haven't squared off since 2013.
Del Potro's career took several unexpected turns, particularly last year, when he was in the hospital after multiple wrist problems.
David Law of BBC Sport tweeted out the image Del Potro posted from last year after his victory Saturday:
At this point, Del Potro is playing with house money. He wasn't supposed to be around long this week since his first match was against top-ranked Novak Djokovic, but he pulled off the upset and hasn't looked back since.
A victory over Murray to secure gold would be the perfect capper to Del Potro's storybook run so far, but he's entering a different world Sunday.
As great as Nadal is, he was in his first tournament since the French Open because of injuries. Murray is at the top of his game, beating anyone and anything that stands in his way. There's no shame in taking home a silver medal from the Olympics.
Prediction: Murray wins three sets to one.
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