Emotional Andy Murray's touch of class after Stan Wawrinka epic

Andy Murray showed why he is adored the world over after offering an emotional tribute to Stan Wawrinka after defeating his old rival at the Cincinnati Masters.

Murray, 35, and Wawrinka, 37, have fought out many tough battles over the years having both won three grand slams each in their illustrious careers.

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However, both have dealt with brutal injuries after turning 30 having fought their way back onto the ATP Tour to be competing at the highest level.

And despite their struggles, the duo put on an epic Cincinnati Masters first round clash that ended in the Scot winning 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 7-5.

Murray paid his respect to Wawrinka in his on-court interview and hoped the fans enjoyed their epic.

He also couldn't help but make a joke at their age following the near-three hour battle.

"I was hanging on in the third set," Murray said.

"I was struggling a bit. So was Stan. We're not young any more."

Murray is no stranger to wearing his heart on his sleeve and showed why he is adored when tearing up about why he keeps playing tennis after all his injuries.

"I started playing when I was four, but probably started taking it seriously when I was 12, so it's been a huge part of my adult life," Murray added.

"When I was out injured and didn't know if I was going to be able to come back, you remember the reason why you started playing the game.

"I started playing as a kid because I love it.

"And it has taken a lot of effort, a lot of struggles to get back to play at this level again and I want to make the most of it while I'm still able to."

Fans reacted to Murray's tearful moment after the match.

Andy Murray defeats old rival in Cincinnati

Murray is now 13-9 against his fellow three-time grand slam winner.

Next up for the Scot is an all-British battle with ninth seed Cameron Norrie, who beat Holger Rune 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-4 in a hard-fought battle.

Croatian Marin Cilic's resurgent season continued with a routine 6-3, 6-3 win over Jaume Munar and Argentine Diego Schwartzman found his form late to beat Alex Molcan 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.

Americans John Isner and Marcos Giron, Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori and Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut also advanced to the second round.

with AAP

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