via Getty
LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 19: Andy Murray of Great Britain and Nick Kyrgios of Australia shake hands following their match on Day Two of the Fever-Tree Championships at Queens Club on June 19, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
via Getty
LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 19: Andy Murray of Great Britain and Nick Kyrgios of Australia shake hands following their match on Day Two of the Fever-Tree Championships at Queens Club on June 19, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Andy Murray clashed against Carlos Alcaraz yesterday in an enticing second-round showdown at Indian Wells Masters. Along with the brilliant tennis, Murray’s unexpected underarm ace also became a highlight from the contest.
The Brit bounced back after losing the first set to defeat Alcaraz, proving that he still can defeat top players by bringing his experience into play at the right moments. The Spaniard tried his best to stay in the contest but the extra effort he put to win the first set had an impact on his level in the next two sets.
Andy Murray serves an underarm ace at Indian Wells Masters 2021
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After producing yet another enthralling contest for tennis fans, Andy Murray gears up to face Alexander Zverev in the third-round at Indian Wells. The duo have met each other twice so far on the ATP tour and the Brit has won both the contests.
USA Today via Reuters
Oct 10, 2021; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Andy Murray (GBR) hits a shot during his second round match against Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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Even though Zverev heads into the match as the clear favorite, the new-found energy of Andy Murray is a force to reckon for any top tier player at the moment.
Coming back to that underarm ace by Andy, a tennis meme page on Instagram shared a post comparing the general reaction to underarm serves when Kyrgios does it and the reception Murray got for his ace yesterday.
View this post on Instagram
Nick Kyrgios has regularly been using the underarm serve on the ATP tour over the past few years. Even though it has worked a few times for him, there have been more instances of the underarm not working out for the Aussie.
Nick Kyrgios shares meme that compares his underarm serve with that of Murray
Even the likes of Alexander Bublik, Davidovich Fokina, and others have used this serving tactic along with Kyrgios.
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Looking at the meme, even the Australian player seemed impressed as she shared the same on his Instagram story without adding any comment.
USA Today via Reuters
Aug 30, 2021; Flushing, NY, USA; Nick Kyrgios of Australia hits to Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain on day one of the 2021 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY Sports
The discussion of underarm serve has been largely divisive among tennis fans with a certain people claiming to be a legitimate technique while others argue that it’s an amateur tactic to implement on the professional tour.
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The underarm ace aside, Murray absolutely deserves all the credit for making it past Carlos Alcaraz after losing the first set. However, Zverev might pose bigger problems for Murray than the young Spaniard in the third round at BNP Paribas Open 2021.
Also read: VIDEO: Andy Murray Does Something He Has Never Done Before- Imitates Nick Kyrgios and Wins a Point
