91Èȱ¬

Excellent artice and I couldn't agree more with your piece. I didn't know about the rumoured comments from the Verdasco camp. If that is the case then that kind of thing has to be invetigated and prevented from happening again. Murray wouldn't use that as an excuse because he's tough enough to ignore that and to normally have the last word, usually by winning.

Verdasco's statistic of 93% on his first serve was simply incredible. But I do think that the next time they play - three sets or five - that Murray will beat him. He's simply the better player but only played in patches yesterday.

I expect him to go on and win a tournament or three before Paris where the expectation will be significantly lower. I fully believe that getting to the quarter finals would represent excellent progress. From there he must seriously target Wimbledon and the US Open. I'm a still believer that he will win a Grand Slam this year.

Decent piece Jonathon, but I disagree that illness had nothing what so ever to do with it, despite what Murray says. If you are in bed for 2 days, like he was before the Melzer match, then it is going to hamper your preparations during a major championship, which is often decided by minute things. The Murray we saw yesterday was mostly a shadow of the force he's been over the last few months. He quite frankly looked haggard. Whether this was due to illness, or as some say over-training, we'll probably never know. If he was ill then I still think he'd maintain the line that it had nothing to do with it - he's too respectful to his fellow pro.
Saying that, Verdasco played some sublime stuff, particularly on serve as you mention. I for one didn't think he had that kind of performance in him, and I'm not sure there will be many repeats of this kind of form.
Interesting to hear the heckling stuff, although I find it difficult to believe to be perfectly honest, as Murray would have said something surely.

Great blog Jonathan..

Andy Murray has had a fantastic run of form since Wimbledon last year. (Olympics aside!)
Although he made it through to the 4th round only dropping 18 games in the process, he never seemed to hit the heights achieved during the 2nd half of 2008. This is credit to Murrays improved resiliance and fitness that he can still dismantle opponents when not at his best.

The new found level of maturity is a sure sign of Andy growing up and credit must go to his "team" around him for keeping his focus simply on the tennis and not the distractions that have built up off the court. Andy refused to get drawn into the "favourites" tag debate when Federer and Djokovic simply wouldn't let it lie.

The expectation of Murray is as high as it has ever been and it is something he needs to accept and use positively. There is now a big "aura" surrounding Andy Murray and the other players in the locker room now accept that he is one to be feared as he has made the "big 3" into the "big 4."

The biggest challenge for Murray this year will be to improve his showing on clay. Whether he teams up with Alex Corretja once more remains to be seen, but it is the one surface where he hasn't been able to produce his best tennis.

Murray has time on his side and and a "Grand slam" will surely come his way sooner rather than later.

Good article Jonathan, I enjoyed reading it.

I've been very very impressed with Murray's development, both physical and mental, over the last 6 months and some of his performances have been exceptional.

Coming into this tournament I had Nadal as a strong favourtie to win but Murray was in the bracket just below alongside Fed and Djockovic. He had a excellent chance of making the semis/final.

In the press conference he was gracious in defeat, didn't point at all towards the illness being a contributory factor and was realistic enough to put the loss into perspective.

Whilst he may have dissappointed a little on court, I was very impressed with him in the interview. A further sign of his ongoing maturity.

As an aside, has anyone known so many people retire through injury in one Grand Slam? I know the heat plays a big factor here and does the scheduling need to be looked at?

Very poor Mr Overend,

You mention Murray's realistic and mature assessment that he isn't the favourite for any of the Grand Slams this year, and shouldn't have been the favourite for this one - but you fail to mention that you, along with other sections of the British press are responsible for these over-inflated expectations and the ridiculous, 'favourite' or even 'second favourite' tag Murray's been unrealistically burdened with.

I know you picked Federer to win the Australian Open, but it took all of your restraint to do so, it was the final line in a blog that waxed poetic about how good of a chance Murray had.

Your blogs tend to take that tone, which is fair enough, it is your opinion, but when you get it wrong you should acknowledge it and admit your own failings.

Your frequent suggestions and implications that 2008 was Andy Murray's year was nothing short of an outrage given Rafael Nadal's achievements in 2008, and clearly the hype has not helped Murray.

I also find the constant reference to Murray's increasing maturity and PR sophistication somewhat empty, when you consider that he is now finally starting to behave like the majority of his rivals. It is only a story because his attitude was previously so bad, he's is now finally achieving parity with the majority of his peers.

I would like Murray to do well, and I'd love to see a British winner at a Grand Slam and I think he will win one eventually, but this season his chances have already been reduced to the US Open because I give him little chance against Federer or Nadal on the grass at Wimbledon, and no chance against Nadal on clay at the French Open.

Nice article.

Murray was second best yesterday, no more no less. He's still however one of the top players in the game, and a single bad day in the office doesn't change that.

Personally, I think Wimbledon but especially the US Open are his best chances on winning a Slam. Aside from the heat, the Australian Open courts are a bit slower that I think he would ideally want - and guys like Verdasco with their huge forehands have just a critical fraction more time to line up their shots.

In faster conditions, only Federer probably stands in the way of a Murray Slam win.

It is not that Federer and Djokovic "simply wouldn't let it lie". It was more a case of the British media asking them over and over about it in order to provoke some controversy. This "favourites" tag debate had nothing to do with tennis. It was all to do with media headlines.

Jonathan, 91Èȱ¬ News is a disgrace.

Yesterday, on the 91Èȱ¬ News Channel, four of their reporters (Matt Gooderick, Nick Hope, Olly Foster and James Munro) queued up to sit in front of a monitor and have a go at Andy Murray just because he lost.

91Èȱ¬ news chiefs on the 6pm and 10pm bulletins, presented by Huw Edwards, also decreed that Murray's loss was worthy of a mention. Contrast that with his appearance at the Masters Cup in Shanghai, which was never mentioned at all on the same bulletins whenever Murray played.

Firstly if the Verdasco rumors are true, then they really must be Ashamed of themselves and i hope Verdasco had no part in it.

Secondly Murray had a below par game not a poor one, he had one disastrous set which i have commented on by saying, i thought it was the worse set of tennis i've seen him play in the last year (last year being 2008 and the small part of 2009) hes played some shocking sets of tennis but the second one ranks up with them and maybe beats them.

First and Third set he won comfortably and played well enough, Fifth set both men played well and was quality wise probably the best set of tennis in the match. his two worse sets were the second and Forth but you can forgive anyone losing the forth set if the opponent serves 93% first serves, purely for the amount of pressure that created murray did well to get a game on the board. i can have no such excuses for his second set however and i hope his coaches are studying that particular set immensely.

Verdasco played out of his skin and overall deserved to go though, murray should never of been favourite but thats perhaps just another excuse for his loss, which murray has not used.

Perhaps I am missing something, but if the poster on the forum was struggling to understand insults and put downs in Spanish, then the suggestion is that they were for Spanish ears. Does Andy Murray speak or even understand colloquial Spanish? If not, then that whole line of argument appears to be spurious.

"We take victories for granted"

Maybe YOU take victories for granted, Jonathan.

Some of us aren't quite so dumb!

May be u should take a break Overend...

Murray never gives any excuses, he accepts his defeat, thats what i like about him.
But reporters (or analysts ) like you try to find the excuses for him, and thats what i don't like...

"His defeats since August have been to Roger Federer in the US Open final (Federer a strong favourite), to Nalbandian in Paris (a superb match with Nalbandian at his unstoppable best), and to Davydenko at the Masters Cup (with Murray exhausted after his comeback win over Federer in the semis)."

That paragraph was disgusting. I came to know today that Andy beat federer in the semifinals of Masters Cup, but as far as i know it was Djokovic vs Davydenko in the 2008 finals. Murray defeated federer in the round robin match and lost to davydenko in the semifinals.

As long as guys like you give ur thoughts, British players will always have to play under that extra pressure, which was not due to them.

And to add to that... Murray is one of the top players in the world and will end the drought of slams in british tennis, but, Mr Overend, please be patient and let him play and grow up. He will give u results (but every player is not federer or nadal).

ow many articles does 91Èȱ¬ plan on publishing about Murrays defeat and how fans should take it and how media should report it and how..yawn yawn

bettclan: "Does Andy Murray speak or even understand colloquial Spanish? If not, then that whole line of argument appears to be spurious."

He lived in Spain as a teenager, so it would be disappointing (although perhaps not surprising for a Brit!) if he didn't understand some Spanish as a result. But I think he should be, and is, robust enough not to be affected by heckling, especially given the level of support he was getting from the crowd as a whole. Sure, Verdasco's camp should be ashamed if the claims are true, but we should discount it as a factor in the outcome.

What's really interesting, for me, is the contrast between Murray and Djokovic's responses to their defeats, which says a lot about the maturity of both players. According to the 91Èȱ¬'s reports:

Murray: "I don't feel [illness] was the reason why I lost. I definitely did have my chances but he played too well. I didn't play my best but sometimes you've just got to say too good, and he played better than me."

Djokovic: "I didn't really have time to recover. Conditions were extreme today. It did affect me more than him. I did request to play a night match but it didn't come up good for me."

Nice article.

I do not wish to stereotype, but regarding the Spanish fans, it seems across all sports they are rude, vulgar and generally appauling at sporting events.

In Murray's match, against Lewis Hamilton and also in football (in the Champions league).

I know, as a Brit, we don't have a particuarlly good record (especially in football), but we have grown past it, and I believe more pressure should be applied to the Spanish fans.

Not to mention the Bosnian-Serb chair fight at the open. It is ridiculous.

Since Andy was in Spain from a young age I would suggest he would understand the insults!
It was a great win for Verdasco. He played out of his skin. I've never seen him play so well against Andy. Almost as if he was fired up! Andy was a pale imitation of himself. Sad - but he lives to fight another slam!

Here's what I think we can learn from Murray's defeat:

Murray has the misfortune - or fortune - depending on how you look at it, of being a professional tennis player during the reign of two of the most exceptional talents ever to pick up a raquet: Roger Federer and Raphael Nadal.

Federer is still on course to match and surpass the Grand Slam achievements of Sampras, whilst Nadal is a force of nature who has the potential and youth to possibly even beat Federer's Grand Slam tally.

Where does Murray's career figure in this? Andy Murray is an extremely naturally-talented tennis player who, on is day, can equal or beat the best in the world, including the two players above who have dominated the game in recent years.

In this respect, he has proven to be more effective than GB's previous best player, Tim Henman, who could never hope to match Federer or Nadal consistently especially in the latter stages of his career.

Murray's is constantly held to account against the highest standards produced by Roger Federer. This is good, because Murray knows exactly how good he is and he has not been found wanting. His record against Federer is impressive.

Murray is content to let everyone else judge him against Federer. He knows that the true measure of success for him is how close he gets to fulfilling his own potential.

I would say Murray definitely has it in him to win a Grand Slam, possibly two, and maybe even a third. He may have to wait another year or so before he wins his first Grand Slam, that is, until Federer's star fades a bit more (just as Federer had to wait for Sampras's star to fade before he got his real opportunity to blossom).

I hope I am wrong, and that Andy wins several Grand Slams. But even if he never wins a Grand Slam he can be very proud of what he has already achieved in tennis.

An excellent article.

The thing about this loss is that I firmly believe that it will do him good in the long run.

Everything seemed to be coming to him just that little bit too easily - the big wins in the second half of 08 and the unbeaten start to this year but especially the wins over Federer, Nadal and Djokovic during that period.

This defeat however will bring him back down to earth with a bump (and I mean that by not suggesting he was ahead of himself in any way) as well as make him think that little bit more about the things that separate grand slam events from the others and why they're so hard to win.

I therefore expect him to move on from here and to further improve. He's young, he's relatively inexperienced but he has a great future in the game.

Here we go again. The British media does not seem to tire about finding the next "British grand slam champion", even if that particular person happens to be Scottish. Get over it.

In fact Murray DID bring up his illness as an excuse. He then said it was no excuse.

Now this may be ever so clever in Britain, but to most folks it is just being sly. If it was nothing, WHY MENTION IT?

Right. Because you were asked about it. Of course.

Totally NOTHING journalism. In fact, it is destructive journalism. Destructive to Murray, and destructive to British sport.

The reason people are starting to hate Murray (which is a dreadful shame given that he seems a perfectly OK guy when asked reasonable questions) is precisely because of the ridiculous and pathetic media coverage given to him by the world media.

He is asked to provoke others. He is asked to shame himself. Everything he is asked is designed to engender loathing and conflict between his person and something else.

Why?

I don't know. I really do not know. I think it has something to do with the character of the journalists, but probably more to do with their leadership. Sly, dishonest, cruel. That is how I would describe the general tone of 91Èȱ¬ journalism.

Look at the way they moderate comments. You can't swear or even use slang, but you can be as cruel and nasty as you like. that is great, just as long as you are "ever so clever". Just as long as you are not "too combustible".

The sports journalism of the 91Èȱ¬ is not funny, and it is not intelligent. It is snide gossip, and it is cruel. Don't get me wrong, I don't care. It is also free, and generally on time, and written in English. So I am all for it.

But if my children spoke the way the journalists do about the people they watch, I would wonder how they became so petty, so mean, and so cruel towards strangers.

I stand willing to be corrected. If others think the humor shown by the 91Èȱ¬ sports journalists does not rely on cruelty towards strangers, say it loud and proud. there are many qualities I could name regarding the british press, but this topic does not require them to be listed.

#20

He is still British despite being Scotish, as I am despite being English, or my friend despite being Welsh.

You get over it.

"Everything he is asked is designed to engender loathing and conflict between his person and something else.

Why?

I don't know. I really do not know."


democracythreat -

Simple. They're green with envy that England can't come up with a top tennis player.

Mystery solved.

#22

Now just to give my impartiality on the point you made I am half Scottish. The point you make is so bitter it made the lemons screwing up their faces.

Please bare in mind that the LTA advertises itself as "British Tennis" on its website. Whilst they pay for Murray and various others across the country to train and play the game then those players continue to represent GBR.

To be completely blunt in relation to this article and in retaliation to the attacks on the media you have to look at where the tag of "favourite" came from. All betting companies put him as favourite on the back of people placing bets. The 91Èȱ¬ report on this and they are now over-hyping.

The only ones guilty of over-hyping Andy Murray is the general public. That being said, sports people across all areas deal with this pressure. Federer deals with it, Tiger Woods deals with it, David Beckham deals with it.

If you are therefore having a go at the media then you have a go at the majority of people in the UK who read it and have become disillusioned with the reality. Basically, if you don't want to have the excitement and anticipation that sport has then be boring and chalk it down to the fact that your sport heroes won't deliver. I really don't care for you pessimists. I prefer to hold out the hope that we will do well and have the right to say I told you so.

Good luck for the rest of the year Andy Murray and may you once again prove the doubters wrong.

Terrible blog.

Totally agree that Murray should be commended for his increasing maturity and disagree with another post who said that he is only now making parity with other pro's - I actually think he's more magmanamous then most.

However, while Murray should be commended for not making any excuses, we should not be making them for him.

The blog makes excuses for every match he has lost since the Olympics!! (Nalbandian at his unbeatable best etc,...!!) It even attempts to give two excuses as to why he lost yesterday....being ill as well as being heckled......please??

He lost in a GS, end of matter. He's still learning and this is another harsh lesson. He should never have been made favourite by anyone really. Yes he may have been the form player going in, but he's never won a GS and is the world number 4 - why was he favourite?!

I saw the final set and I think the pressure was getting to him as he just wasn't going for shots like he normally does - pressure he shouldn't have had when going for a first GS.

US Open for me is his best chance and I hope he does it, but with a bit more realism by the media this time, both in victories and defeats.

one word, "heat". now i'm not making excuses for him, just stating the unspoken fact. it's true that every player has the same problem, but some players are able to cope with the heat better then others, murray seems to have more of an issue with it, so come next year, he will need to work on that part of his game, and make it a strength not a weakness.

Responding to Jonathon Overend Blog.

Andy Murray lost because he reached the point of exhaustion. If you have played sport at a high level, when you get beyond the limit, your decision making suffers greatly. Murray is normally the gritiest of players when the chips are down, yet at the start of the last game, he hit two unforced errors when merely trying to spar for position; ie. not under pressure nor pressing to put his oponent under pressure. A sure sign of brain switch off which comes with complete exhaustion. After his strole against Melser, he looked dead on his feet. Indeed, my wife noted he had to be supported just before his interview on Saturday. That he turned up for the game two days later and indeed almost pulled it off indicates his grit and ability. He would not have survived the next round any way given his condition but all credit to him for not being frightened of losing. That is very important if you want to be a winner.
My big concern is how the English Media (yes English) can put pepole off our sporting stars. Look at Hamilton. No one beyond these shores likes the guy any more because of his media persona. And now Andy Murray is in danger of being portrayed in the same way. Lay off him and give him a chance to achieve his ambition. How many British prospects have been thwarted by the media in this country. Too many and it is time to lay off and write responsibly; if you are able.

"Yes he may have been the form player going in, but he's never won a GS and is the world number 4 - why was he favourite?!" somebody says.

Well, he was the bookies favourite because a lot of people, not just in the UK, placed bets on him. Most commentators were putting Federer as the player most likely to win, but Murray as the player most likely to cause an upset, which, given his form, was fair enough. You have to remember that, with the exception of the US Open, where to be honest he had a bit of luck in having nearly two days to rest before the final, Federer's form has been mediocre in the last 6 months. You also have to remember that Nadal has never got to the final of a hard court grand slam in many attempts, and that Murray has for some time been talked about by people who certainly know their tennis as the best hard court player, alongside Federer, in the world. Nadal may at last win this one, but hard courts have never been his natural habitat.

So I think it was a good blog, and I think Murray can now be seen as a wholly admirable young man of real maturity who doesn't make excuses and doesn't, unlike certain others who should know better, make snide inuendos about the abilities of his rivals. OK - he let out a few expletives on court yesterday - but Verdasco did some shouting too and it included some very foul language, though because it wasn't in English he won't get criticised for it. Verdasco deserve great credit for his win, but if his camp are trying to put off his opponent (and it must be that) he should stop them or they should be penalised.

Perhaps Murray would perform better with more English taxpayers' subsidies?

"Perhaps Murray would perform better with more English taxpayers' subsidies?"

This is a peculiar comment. What does it mean? Murray is a millionaire from his own earnings. He certainly doesn't need taxpayers' money. Indeed, I'm not aware that any professional tennis player gets taxpayers' money in the UK - why would they?

Murray's been regarded as the best player in the world for the past few months on the basis of his performance. He lost one tennis match a couple of days ago, his first since November. He's ranked number 4 in the world over the whole year and likely to be No 3 soon. What more do you want?

And he's British - so he pays his taxes like every good Englishman, Scotsman, Irishman and Welshman.

A good article by Overends for once.

Scotland's No1's time will indeed come!

Verdasco's progress in the tournament puts his defeat of Murray in perspective. Murray definitely looked a bit jaded in that in match, but Verdasco's defeat of Tsonga and his epic against Nadal. Show that he is a player who hit his peak performance in this tournament. Just as Tsonga did last year in reaching the final. It happens ...

So Murray losing to him was hardly the disaster that some have suggested. I'd take Andy to beat him next time.

Only two posts for the entire tournament - did you forget to take your laptop power supply to Oz?

It hardly warrants having this blog as a "feature" story on the 91Èȱ¬ Tennis homepage for 2 weeks.

pot and kettle spring to mind --so Verd and co were swearing--what planet have you been on havent you witnessed the fould mouthed scot in his travels !! turn a blind eye and keep the sycophanitic myopic bandwagon rolling--AM will never win a slam he only wins when the other players are practising at ATP events--funny how al ltop 3 said he wouldnt win AO !!

and keep on about how great a play maker he is --PAH --all the players can play fancy shots they just dont bother --POWER and soemtimes finesse.

And you forget --the tensi world isnt standing still ie Verd coming from nowhere to wallop him--and othes will be there soon--and take a look at how true sportsmen behave when teh final is over --imagine AM conducting himself liek that NO WAY

if we're going to bring up alleged verbal abuse from the Spanish team, this is a quote from a (British) friend who was courtside at the Murray vs Verdasco match...

ME: i was up until the early hours watching day session and now watching replay of murray match where were you sitting, behind murray's chair ? i'll watch out for you...
MY FRIEND: sitting 4 seats behind murray to the right of him - murray was a complete prat to the ballboys and ballgirls what a disgrace - I'm glad the Spanish chap won

well said "whirling" AM attitude is a disgrace, wonder why he didnt feature on 91Èȱ¬ Sportsman of the year --oh yes "SPORTSMAN" thats why !!
if only we could find a true worthy sportsman like Nadal or Fed. Also notice how other players react at the net at the end of the game no one has a word for him just a quick handshake and away. The real issue is that the press 91Èȱ¬ etc turn a blind eye to all this -because they are so far up you can see the label on the bottom of thier shoes.

I'm quite confident that Andy Murray will become world number 1 towards the end of 2010 and that he will hold that position for most of the following 5 years. As regards grand slams, I see him winning 6 in total - 1 Wimbledon, 2 Aussie and 3 US ...