PARIS -- For each top athlete, a word. For Usain Bolt, it would have to be speed. For footballs Lionel Messi: balance. For swimmer Michael Phelps: buoyant. But for the new king of mens tennis, Andy Murray, a quality both mental and physical springs to mind: fortitude.Meanies would argue that Murray has taken over the No.1 ranking this week -- the first Briton to reach the summit -- only because the three players who were better than him for so long finally vacated it, a tennis equivalent of John, Paul and George giving Ringo a rare turn at the mic. And there is a modicum of truth in that.Roger Federer, the 17-time major champion who this week dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since October 2002, long had the measure of Murray, beating him in three Grand Slam finals, but is now a largely spent force at age 35.Rafael Nadals creaky body is paying the bill for his brand of nitro-power tennis that won him 14 major titles and the top ranking for a total of 141 weeks to July 2014. The 30-year-old hasnt won a major since then, or even made a semifinal, and has had injuries to both wrists. But his career Grand Slam record against Murray is unequivocal: seven wins in nine encounters, with the last defeat way back at the 2010 Australian Open.And the top dog Murray toppled, the now second-ranked Novak Djokovic, won five of his 12 major titles by beating the Scot in the final. If Djokovic can now regroup, rethink and re-motivate himself with new targets having completed his career Grand Slam this year and then suffering a dip, leaving the door ajar for Murray, then the reign of the new No. 1 could be short.The top ranking, then, doesnt change the fact that Murray is still only, a word that seems uncharitable in the circumstances, the fourth-best player in what has been modern tennis toughest era. But Murray may well be the most stubborn, the eras paragon of perseverance. Being the fourth member of the Big Four for so long could have broken players with less heart. He first got to the No. 2 ranking more than seven years ago and spent a total of 76 weeks there. Thats a long time to be waiting in the wings.But, in the end, Murray outlasted all-comers. He is the sailor who soldiered through storms that chased others back to harbor, the boxer repeatedly floored but never knocked out. He used the beatings he suffered from Federer, Nadal and Djokovic -- losing 20 of the 25 times he played them at the majors -- as reasons to keep improving himself. He could have cursed his luck, been led astray by the mirage that in any other decade, hed have won more than two Wimbledon titles and the U.S. Open by now. But instead Murray just worked even harder, took better care of himself and made sure that when the opportunity finally came, he was ready to seize it.It would be tempting to delve into Murrays past for signposts that explain his ascent to the top.One could argue that cutting his tennis teeth in inhospitable Scottish weather more suited to golf, rugby or football maybe toughened him up. As kids, he and brother Jamie would hit a balloon back and forth over rope hung from a radiator at home.One could also fall into psycho-babble and hazard a guess that surviving the slaughter of 16 children and their teacher by a gunman at his Dunblane Primary School in 1996 helped teach Murray about deep emotional pain and how to rebound from it.Or one could point to the teen-aged Murray who badgered his parents to send him to a tennis academy in Spain as evidence that hes never lacked drive and the willingness to make sacrifices.But more simply, the top ranking is reward for his journey. A long journey, with multiple crossroads where Murray could have turned back and convinced himself that Mounts Federer, Nadal and Djokovic were simply too steep.Instead, he kept climbing.Not the most eloquent of speakers, at least not in public, one phrase of Murrays stands out, delivered after he lost to Federer in the 2012 Wimbledon final.Im going to try this, and its not going to be easy, Murray said, fighting back tears.Specifically, he was talking about how difficult it was to deliver his losers speech to the supportive Center Court crowd.But that philosophy -- not easy and try -- is Murray in a nutshell.---John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jleicester(at)ap.org or follow him at http://twitter.com/johnleicester Pittsburgh Pirates Gear . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. Josh Bell Jersey . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. https://www.cheappiratesjerseys.us/902e-danny-murtaugh-jersey-pirates.html . Radwanska, making her debut in the Seoul tournament, hit eight aces in a match that lasted 1 hour, 4 minutes at Olympic Park tennis stadium. "It was definitely a very good match -- I was playing really good tennis," Radwanska said. Kyle Crick Jersey . Mickelson barely made the cut but had the best round of the day with nine birdies and an eagle coupled with two bogeys to sit two shots behind leader Craig Lee of Scotland. Lee shot a 69 for a 12-under 204 total. "I just love the fact I am in contention and have an opportunity in my first tournament of the year here in Abu Dhabi," Mickelson said. J. T. Brubaker Jersey . Cuban testified Thursday that he was upset when the companys CEO told him news that would reduce the value of his shares, for which hed paid $7.5 million. But he said he did nothing improper when he sold those shares over the next two days. MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Idle for most of the past five seasons, backup quarterback Matt Moore came through on the final series Sunday for the Miami Dolphins.And his work is just beginning.With Ryan Tannehill sidelined by a knee injury that will likely end his season, the Dolphins turned to Moore, who directed the drive that led to a field goal on the final play to beat the Arizona Cardinals 26-23.On Saturday at the New York Jets, Moore will likely make his first start since 2011, the year before Tannehill was drafted. And the Dolphins (8-5) will be in the thick of the race for their first playoff berth in eight years.The Cardinals (5-7-1) are almost certain to spend the postseason at home after another ugly road loss.Here are things to know about both teams:SUPER SUB: Moore made 12 starts for the Dolphins in 2011, but has thrown only 35 passes since then, with Tannehill starting every game the past five years.Thats about to change. Tannehill limped off with a left knee injury in the third quarter after he was hit around the legs by defensive tackle Calais Campbell, and the Dolphins fear their quarterback tore his ACL. Hell undergo further testing Monday.Miami failed to pick up a first down in Moores first three series, but he threw completions of 12 and 29 yards to Kenny Stills in the last minute to set up Andrew Franks game-winning 21-yard field goal.When Matt came in, he brought energy and enthusiasm, tackle JaWuan James said. Hes a leader. Were confident in Matt.PLAYOFF RACE: Miami pulled into a tie with Denver in the race for the final AFC wild-card spot. The Broncos lost to Tennessee 13-10.The Dolphins finish the regular season with games against their three AFC East rivals.You talk about where were at as a team, you cant ask for much more, Moore said. The ball is in our court.Arizona, 1-5 in away games, will try to bounce backk against New Orleans at home Sunday.dddddddddddd.This was pretty much a playoff game for us, and we knew we needed the W real bad, Campbell said.RUNNING DOWN THE CLOCK: With 10 seconds left, the Dolphins narrowly averted disaster while running one final play before the field goal.Moore briefly bobbled the snap and a teammate stepped on his foot, which caused a sloppy handoff to Darien Williams.Several seconds ticked off while Williams became entangled in a scrum, and there was only a second remaining when the Dolphins managed to call time out.Not the way you wanted that series to end, Moore said.I thought it was very questionable whether that second was on that clock, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said. Thank God the home teams do not run the clock, the NFL does, or youd really have a (controversy).PIVOTAL PLAY: After the Cardinals scored a touchdown to cut their deficit to 21-15, Jordan Phillips blocked Chandler Catanzaros extra-point kick, and Walt Aikens scooped up the ball and scored .I saw the ball, picked it up and the rest was history, Aikens said. I was tired. Its a long run for 2 points.The three-point swing turned out to be the difference in the game.CONTAINED: The Cardinals David Johnson came into the game leading the NFL with 15 touchdowns, but was kept out of the end zone. He rushed for 80 yards and caught passes for 41.Defenses are keying in on me a little bit more -- double-teaming me, putting their safety or DB on me, Johnson said. So I really do have to focus more on attention to detail.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine ' ' '