A visibly injured Andy Murray refused to retire as Sam Querrey became the first American man to reach the semi-final of any Grand Slam since Andy Roddick came runner-up in 2009.
After losing the first set, Querrey fought back to triumph over defending champion Murray on Wimbledon’s Centre Court to win 3-6 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 6-1.
This means Novak Djokovic could reclaim the world number one spot from Murray if he goes on to clinch the Wimbledon title.
Similarly, should Querrey go on to win the tournament, he would be the first American man to win a Grand Slam final in 14 years and in light of his performance against Murray, it seems a very real prospect.
Querrey, who seems to be making a thing of dispatching former Wimbledon champions after beating Djokovic at last year’s tournament, told BBC Sport: “I didn’t start my best, but I just kept with it, kept swinging away and then really found a groove in the fourth and fifth set. [From then,] everything started falling my way.”
Reacting to the realisation that he is the first American man to reach a semi-final Grand Slam this decade, Sam said: “It feels great, this is a dream come true and to be in the semi-final at Wimbledon makes it a little bit more special.”
Despite leading by a set and a break, Murray’s movement became increasingly stifled by the hip injury that had interfered with his build-up to the tournament. The Scot dropped serve twice in a row and from then on, Querrey took charge of the match, winning with his 27th ace.
Querrey will face Marin Cilic the semi-final, and fans can watch the encounter in person by taking advantage of our hospitality packages.
Murray’s level of disappointment was matched only by his mountain of determination, as he told a BBC reporter: “I've been a little bit sore throughout the tournament but I tried my best; right to the end, I gave everything I had.”
“There was an opportunity there so I'm sad that it's over.”
Speaking about his hip, he added: "As you get older, things are a little bit tougher to manage than they are when you're younger. I've managed to deal with it for a very long time. I'm sure, moving forward, I'll be able to get through it.
“Now I'll sit down with my team and look at the next set, at the longer term, and come up with a plan for what I have to do next.”