The Australian matched the former Wimbledon champion for tenacity, but not for experience and match management
Sometimes chants work, sometimes they do not. And the great minds in the gallery who endeavoured to stretch the word “Kokkinakis” across the breadth of the Seven Nation Army riff had been too ambitious with their syllables. It was a bit Billy Mack, except that Christmas is All Around topped the charts – this lot had no excuse. At least back in the Lleyton era we got “Walking in a Hewitt wonderland”. Now we must endure “Let’s go, Kokky, let’s go”.
Granted, it was after 10pm by the time Margaret Court Arena welcomed Thanasi Kokkinakis and Andy Murray, and with late nights come the inevitable late-night vibes. “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi” was still a staple among the Australians in attendance for this scarcely describable five hours and 45 minutes. But the collective inclination was more “Up the Kokk” than “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands”. The mood was jaunty, hovering precariously between mischievous and meddlesome, and it remained that way until 4.06am, when the pair finally – finally – hobbled off in a primal daze, their bodies emptied of their glycogen and possibly their sanity.