GB No.1 Christian Murphy has admitted that his nerves had gone through the shedder while he and partner Sam Jones held firm in the face of a determined German fightback to secure Great Britain’s place in Dubai for the padel World Championships.
With the third versus fourth play-off match, which provided the last ticket for Dubai, finely balanced at one rubber each, Murphy and Jones roared off to a very strong start to take the opening set 6-2.
Yet the obdurate German pairing of Lingen and Julich would not go away and they hit back to take the second set 6-4 before the Brits edged the decider 6-3 after being forced to save a breakpoint while serving out.
Now Murphy, who has proven himself to be the Ace in the GB pack, is looking forward to leading his country into Dubai and says it will be the proudest moment of his career: “It was tough as the Germans would not stop fighting but you expect that of them and of course it is natural to feel nerves with so much at stake. But we stayed strong when it mattered and now we have the World Championships to look forward to in around a month.
“For me as the No.1 ranked player in the team it is extra special to be looking forward to these world champs and we will go to Dubai determined to make everyone proud of us but first we need to let what we achieved tonight sink in.”
Murphy had to fly back from his sister’s wedding in Cadiz to play his leading man role and his dynamic movement and scything overheads combined to great effect with Jones’ resolute defensive skills.
Now the head Brit Boy reckons they can reprise their pairing in Dubai to great effect and Murphy said: “I enjoy playing with Sam and we have played together before and we will see what happens with the selection in Dubai but I’d love to partner Sam again as our game’s complement each other.
“It has been quite a day with having to fly back from Cadiz but it has really been worth it. This is a moment I won’t forget in a hurry.”
The tie had started with a fraught three set affair which featured Richard Brooks and Louie Harris who fought their way back from a gut-wrenching first stanza that saw the opening set slip away from them 7-5 after they had established and early lead.
But Harris and Brooks would not be deterred and as German accuracy dropped, Harris, the Welshman with the physique of The Hulk, began to unload from overhead and with Brooks probing volleys pinning the Germans in areas they did not want to play in the GB pairing turned the tide in the second set emphatically to claim a 6-1 success.
Controversy erupted early in the third segment when during one brutal rally, which had the players performing like extras from the set of the Keanu Reeves Matrix films, a ball dropped from Harris’ pocket and the point had to be replayed.
This went down like the Titanic with German stalwart Fritz Lingen who insuated from courtside it had been a deliberate ploy and words were exchanged with Harris emphatically denying the charge.
Then after a 6-2 third set triumph handed the British pairing victory emotions frothed again on the side-lines and Tournament director Jose Maria Catalan and staff had to intervene.
The fact that video footage backed Harris’ claim of an accidental spill seemingly cutting no ice with his German accuser.
But with peace breaking out the British were off to the best possible start before the second tie saw Germany’s no.1 pairing of Matthias Wunner and Johannes Lindermayer claiming an emphatic 7-5, 6-2 victory over Sandy Farquharson and Nikhil Mohindra to level the proceedings.
It was then that Murphy, fresh from his sister’s wedding and the redoubtable Jones, came to the fore in what was a rollercoaster three set affair with emotion and energy ebbing and flowing like the tide during their 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 victory.
All of which has left GB Men’s head coach John Leach a proud man as he looks forward to leading his country to a second successive World Championships at the expense of the country who knocked them out of the previous one.
A clearly emotional Leach speaking after the celebrations had temporarily abated said: “It is very sweet to be going to Dubai and there is no doubt that getting there by taking revenge on a very good German side who put us out of Qatar last time around makes it all the sweeter.
“But the fact we are back for a second successive World Championships with such a young squad for me, as the head coach, underlines the journey we are on as a unit. I am very proud of every one of the boys and I know they all have so much more to give.”
