IT was more of a slog than a parade at times, but the new king of tennis and his subjects didn’t care.
Andy Murray made sure it was not a case of “After the Lord Mayor’s Show” by grinding out victory over Marin Cilic in his first match as world No 1.
And that was all the crowd which had gathered to celebrate his coronation wanted.
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Murray will surely have to find more consistently regal form if he is to prevent Novak Djokovic regaining his throne in London.
But a 6-3 6-2 win over a dangerous opponent was a good way to start his reign.
The O2 can sometimes feel pretty sterile in the round-robin stages of the end-of-season showdown, but not last night.
There was a crackle of anticipation in the air as the London crowd waited for a special occasion few if any ever expected to experience: a British player walking on to court as the world No 1.
The welcome for Murray was loud and heartfelt, with many spectators on their feet to acclaim a man who has won over all but the most churlish of British sports fans and now commands a place in the affections of millions.
Not a single person laughs anymore when a rogue moron shouts, “Come on, Tim!”
But he knows as well as anyone how top-level sport offers few chances to rest on hard-earned laurels.
And Cilic is a player who has torn up a few scripts in his time, not least when winning the 2014 US Open.
His victory over Murray in their last meeting, the final of August’s Cincinnati Masters, had been less of a surprise because the Scot had used up so much mental and physical energy winning Olympic gold the week before.
Nonetheless, the big Croat had achieved his first win over Novak Djokovic to help set up Murray’s climb to the top of the rankings and arrived at the O2 as arguably the most in-form player in the world after his opponent.
Cilic threatened to kill the party atmosphere immediately when he held two break points in the opening game.
After Murray had saved them and then broken his opponent’s serve, he surrendered the advantage straightaway with a loose game.
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An early rash of double faults was suggesting a bit of stage fright on his part, but he was not alone as Cilic dropped serve again and then saw a break back chance snatched from him by an ace.
Unforced errors were comfortably outstripping winners with both men struggling for consistency.
So when Murray took the first set, the mood was more of relief than celebration.
He had to save a break point in the second game of the second, but there were signs he was finding his game and no longer allowing Cilic to dictate points.
The decisive break came in the fifth game, thanks to two fabulous forehand winners. Another gave him daylight at 5-2 ahead.
Next up from the ranks of the pretenders to the throne will be Kei Nishikori, who beat Stan Wawrinka 6-2 6-3.
But at the first attempt, the king had sent his people home happy.
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