Andy Murray comes back in Australian Open after being on the backfoot much like these other sporting heroes

Andy Murray seemed to be in hot water during his second round in the Australian Open against homeboy Thanasi Kokkinakis, as he set off on the backfoot in the longest match of his 18-year-career.

Kokkinakis, who is nearly a decade younger than Andy and has not undergone two hip surgeries, won two straight sets and was finding strength from the home crowd as the match ran into the early hours of 20 January.

However, the Scottish player was not letting him go down without a fight, as Andy Murray not only marked a comeback to his tennis career after a couple of years of poor performance due to injuries and Covid-19 impacting his team, but also came back to win the last three sets putting him on top.

The five hour and 45 minute-long match went down right to the net, but like other sporting heroes, Andy Murray was able to dig deep and break through his potential breaking point.

In light of Andy advancing to the third round of the season’s first Grand Slam, PeopleWorld takes a look at other comeback Kings and Queens of the sporting world:

Michael Jordan

When you think of basketball, you think of ‘His Airness’ Michael Jordan who has six championships under his belt. It is important to note that three of those accolades were won following Michael’s comeback to the sport.

Michael retired from his beloved sport in 1993 as he grieved the loss of his father James Jordan Sr. who was murdered in July of that year.

He played a couple of seasons in minor leagues while away from the NBA for a year and a half, but returned to the Chicago Bulls by making a simple announcement stating: ‘I’m Back’.

Muhammad Ali

‘Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee’ - this was boxing legend Muhammad Ali’s motto throughout his glittering career in the ring, even after he was suspended for three and a half years due to his claim for conscientious objector status after the U.S. military drafted him to fight in Vietnam.

While Ali was the frontrunner throughout the 1960s, he came back to the sport in the 1970s when his competition had taken a step forward.

Facing the likes of George Foreman and Joe Frazier, Ali initially lost ‘the Fight of the Century’ but regained his cool and trumped the pair to make the ultimate comeback.

Monica Seles

Monica Seles was number one in the tennis world in 1991, representing both the United States as well as Yugoslavia in her career, and was on the up until 1993.

While changing sides of the court during a quarter-final match in Hamburg, a man reached over the barrier and stabbed Monica in the back with a blade, in between her shoulders.

The former number one disappeared from the tennis world for a couple of years before returning to clinch the Canadian and Australian Open titles in 1995 and 1996 respectively.

Niki Lauda

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Niki Lauda made an impressive comeback to Formula 1 when fighting for his second world championship.

After being severely burnt when his Ferrari burst into flames following a crash, Lauda lapsed into a coma due to internal bleeding.

Just 43 days later, Niki Lauda was behind the wheel again and went on to achieve two more world championships.

Bethany Hamilton

Certainly a Queen of coming back to the sport you love most is Bethany Hamilton who got back into the water surfing despite losing an arm in a shark attack.

Bethany underwent several surgeries off the back of the 2003 tragedy, which took place off the coast of a Hawaiian island called Kauai, but jumped back onto her board a few months later.

Bethany lost 60% of her blood from the attack but with her heart set on surfing, she went on to win a championship and turn professional.

Greg Lemond

Probably the most impressive comeback story of all time is American cyclist Greg Lemond who overcame numerous hurdles to win three Tour de France championships.

Greg not only broke his wrist during a competition but also had to overcome losing three-quarters of his blood, a collapsed lung, a shattered finger, and numerous bullets in his heart and liver from a turkey hunting accident.

Two years of recovery brought the first American Tour de France winner back in the saddle to grab two more titles in 1989 and 1990.