Andy Murray delayed his retirement as a scarcely believable escape act saw the British tennis great and Dan Evans save five match points to win their Olympics men’s doubles opener.
Murray, 37, confirmed last week that the Paris Games would be his final event before retiring from the sport he loves.
His storied career looked to be heading to an end before a remarkable recovery saw the British pair win 2-6 7-6 (7-5) 11-9 against Japan’s Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori.
“The way we were playing to that stage would not have suggested we were likely to come back,” said Murray.
“Certainly from my side I felt I was not playing well. Evo played well at times, but for both of us we could play much better.
“It all clicked at the end.”
When Daniel netted on the Britons’ first match point, Murray and Evans looked stunned and almost unsure how to react.
They had trailed 9-4 in the deciding tie-break, at which point defeat seemed inevitable, with the subsequent turnaround leaving Murray and Evans almost as gobsmacked as anyone.
Evans swivelled towards his team-mate and leapt towards him as they shared an emotional hug.
Even Murray’s mother Judy, watching from the stands like she has done through his career, had almost written him off.
“I was mentally working out which flight I would get home tonight,” she told BBC Sport.
“But you can never write him off.”
