Andy Murray accomplishes unique feat at Australian Open, becomes player with most match wins at a Grand Slam without winning title

Andy Murray achieved a unique feat with his first-round victory over Nikoloz Basilashvili in the 2022 Australian Open on Tuesday. The Brit became the player with the most number of wins (49) at a Grand Slam without having lifted the title, surpassing Ivan Lendl.

The former World No. 1 came through a five-set marathon against Basilashvili. After battling for three hours and 55 minutes, the three-time Grand Slam champion sealed a 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4 win.

THIS KING 😍

3 years after announcing he had to stop tennis, Andy Murray wins a huge clash vs Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-1 3-6 6-4 6-7 6-4 to get back into @AustralianOpen 2nd round for the 1st time since 2017 https://t.co/jI8F3Q0rPR

The win was Murray's 49th at the Australian Open, a Major he has never won. He has been the runner-up at Melbourne five times in his career, losing one final to Roger Federer and four to Novak Djokovic.

Murray's former coach Ivan Lendl won 48 matches at Wimbledon but never got his hands on the trophy. Similarly, Tomas Berdych, won 47 matches at the Australian Open without lifting the trophy even once.

Defeating 🇬🇪 Nikoloz Basilashvili at @AustralianOpen 🇬🇧 Andy Murray collects his 49th winning match in this tournament and becomes the player with most wins in a Slam without winning the title

#AusOpen https://t.co/zBk0eUBEuN

Murray currently has a 49-13 win-loss record at the Australian Open, his second-best at a Grand Slam after the Wimbledon Championships, where the 34-year-old enjoys a 84% win percentage.

Andy Murray's win over Nikoloz Basilashvili was his first at the Australian Open in 1,822 days

Murray's win over Basilashvili on Tuesday was his first at the Australian Open in 1,822 days. The Brit last won a match at the Happy Slam in 2017, when he defeated Sam Querrey in straight sets in the third round. He went on to lose to Mischa Zverev in the fourth round.

A first #AusOpen win for 1⃣,8⃣2⃣2⃣ days.

@andy_murray doesn't know the word quit. https://t.co/eTpK9boGdc

Murray didn't feature at the Australian Open in 2018 because of a hip injury and suffered a first-round exit at the hands of Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut in 2019. He missed out on the Australian Open in 2020 and 2021, before making his return this week.

The Brit will lock horns with Japan's Taro Daniel in the second round of the 2022 Australian Open on Thursday.