"Fred Perry, you have company!" announces Sports Illustrated after Andy Murray shook a 76-year monkey off his back to end Britain's wait for a men's singles grand slam champion. "Murray picked a heck of a way to win his long-elusive first major," says Jon Wertheim. "Monday night's win over Novak Djokovic was epic in the truest sense, a wild, five-set odyssey that featured swings of momentum, obstacles, acts of God, redemption and, finally, triumph."
The men's game has been spoilt for absorbing grand slam finals in the era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic, but the New York Times agrees the four-hour, 54-minute contest – which tied the record for the longest US Open final – was just as unforgettable. "Epic is an overused word in tennis, particularly in this era of extraordinary defence when rallies and finals routinely extend to tremendous lengths," it writes. "But this mettle detector of a US Open final was worthy of the term as was Murray's own personal quest for possession of one of the trophies that continue to define tennis careers."
As well as welcoming Murray to tennis's top table – "The Big Three is finally and undeniably the Big Four. After years of chasing the lead group of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, Murray joined their golden-age club in earnest" – the New York Times also recognises the 25-year-old's much-improved temperament. "He did it by trumping his own perfectionist streak and the negativity that has long accompanied it: letting a few groans and longshoreman-worthy oaths escape his Scottish lips but never allowing himself to exit this monumental match emotionally or mentally."
For Reuters, the memory of Perry's last US Open win now seems so 1936. "Britain's long wait is over. The nation that invented modern tennis finally has a champion for the new age," the news agency announces. "The jokes about wooden rackets and men playing tennis in long, white trousers have lost their punchline and Perry can now rest in peace."
In Australia, the Sydney Morning Herald was quick to hail Murray's achievement – but still had time to take a dig at the English first. "It is tempting to declare this a shameful day for English sport," the newspaper reports. "To claim that, 76 years after that country produced its last male grand slam winner, even cross-border rival Scotland has one. However, these are sensitive times. To air such a provocative proposition might have the author cast down into the dark world of the social media trolls. Especially if England gets the internet.
"Besides, Murray's groundbreaking victory deserves far greater respect and acclaim. To carry the doubts created by his four previous grand slam defeats – not to mention the expectations of a success-starved tennis nation – into a fifth set, and emerge with the trophy, is a monumental achievement of the body and the mind."
The Melbourne publication the Age, meanwhile, addresses the mystery of Murray's missing watch: "A bumbling delay followed Murray's victory as the newest grand slam sensation rummaged around in his bag, limping in pain back and forth to his box to find his watch. It may seem like a strange thing to do in those usually triumphant post-match moments, but the $2,000 (£1,250) watch is actually worth millions of dollars in a sponsorship deal. Rado were undoubtedly rubbing their hands with glee as photos of Murray and his D-Star 200 getting up close and personal with the trophy were beamed around the world." Though Murray's £1,250 wrist accessory is nothing compared to Nadal's £250,000 jewel-encrusted gadget.
And finally, what of the great British-Scottish debate? Has Murray's victory finally put that discussion to bed? Sports Illustrated's Bryan Armen Graham believes so. "It's long been observed that when Murray wins he's British, but when he loses he's Scottish. English supporters have never figured out how to support/embrace/understand Murray, thrown off by his aloof presence and a dour on-court manner that at times personified PG Wodehouse's claim that it's never difficult to distinguish between a Scotsman with a grievance and a ray of sunshine.
"For years that may have been the case. But after Djokovic pushed a forehand past the baseline on match point to end one of the most mythical droughts in all of sports, surely Murray's identity crisis will be resolved for good."
