Andy Murray helps Britain eliminate U.S. in Davis Cup play

Andy Murray has won some of the biggest titles in tennis with Grand Slam triumphs at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open as well as a gold medal at the London Olympic Games.

Unlikely as it seems, more success could be around the corner in the Davis Cup for Britain’s top player.

Murray jumped up and down with his jubilant teammates in a celebration huddle after beating John Isner, 7-6 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (4), on Sunday to clinch Britain’s first-round victory over the United States. It was the second straight year that Britain has ousted the Americans at this stage in the World Group.

A home quarterfinal match against France on July 17-19 is next for the British, who finally — after decades of disappointment — have a Davis Cup team to be reckoned with. Murray is leading the way and, judging by the passion of the crowd in Glasgow this week, the British public is starting to believe, too.

“We are playing at our level, at our limits right now,” said Murray, who beat Donald Young in four sets on Friday. “Hopefully we can do that right through to the end of the year.”

Britain won the last of its nine Davis Cup titles in 1936, and hasn’t reached the semifinals since 1981.

U.S. captain Jim Courier said Britain deserved to be among the favorites.

“When you have a great player and champion like Andy, against most teams they are up 2-0 going in,” Courier said. “We have seen Boris Becker take a Germany team to a championship when he was the best singles player by a pretty wide margin.

“When you have Andy Murray, you have a chance.”

Britain won the match 3-2. Young beat James Ward in Sunday’s second reverse singles after the Briton retired with a sore knee when leading 7-5 0-1. Ward is playing in Indian Wells next week.

The Americans were up against it after the 20th-ranked Isner lost to Ward — ranked No. 111 — on Friday in a five-set match that lasted five hours.

Bob and Mike Bryan kept the U.S. team alive with a five-set win over Jamie Murray and Dominic Inglot in the doubles on Saturday but it was asking a lot for Isner — mentally and physically shaken from what he called a “brutal” loss to Ward — to rebound against Murray.