Murray-mania

Until Andy Murray ends Britain’s 75-year wait for a male grand slam singles champion then inevitably he will be seen as an underachiever.

Considering the strength of the era that Murray belongs to, it is not a very fair assessment. With every passing year it seems like he has been getting closer and there was every reason to believe at the start of the season that this could be the year he finally made the breakthrough.

Federer’s career appeared to be on the wane, and not for the first time there were question marks over Rafael Nadal’s fitness. Unfortunately for Murray, it was the turn of someone else to step up and stake their claim to be the sport’s greatest ever player.

Just as the window of opportunity appeared to be opening wide at last, Novak Djokovic produced one of the greatest seasons in modern history, capturing three grand slam titles and finishing with a 70-6 record.

The first slam of the year in Australia was another near miss for Murray. When Nadal was beaten in the quarter-finals after suffering more knee trouble the path was clear for a third grand slam final appearance. When Federer was dumped out in the semi-final by Djokovic things looked rosier still for the Scot.

However, Djokovic was no pushover. The Serb had dropped only one set on his way to the final and he rolled over Murray in straight sets to complete a fantastic tournament.

The two players, who have known each other since they were kids, then took completely different paths for the next couple of months on the tour. Djokovic went on one of the best winning runs in the modern era–winning his first 41 matches of the season before losing to Federer in the French Open semi-finals–while Murray suffered a number of disappointing early round losses, including two against players ranked outside the world’s top 100.

The hangover from a grand slam final defeat seemed to hit Murray hard, just as it had in 2010 and at the start of the clay court season he decided to split with coach Alex Corretja. Murray seemed to take to the red dirt a lot more than usual though, and he resurrected his season with a couple of strong showings in the Rome and Monte Carlo masters, where he very nearly became the first man to defeat Djokovic in 2011 when he served for the match against him.

Murray carried on his good form into the second grand slam of the year at Roland Garros and produced one of the greatest comeback wins of his career in the fourth round when he battled from two sets down to defeat Viktor Troicki. Murray had suffered a twisted ankle in the previous round and looked ready to default the match throughout the first two sets, but showed incredible guts and determination to come back and clinch the victory.

A meeting with Rafael Nadal in the semi-final was the Scot’s reward for his great form in France, but he was beaten in straight sets by the Spaniard. Although, that was probably the least painful semi-final defeat of his career given Nadal’s unbelievable record at the tournament.

Returning to the UK was next on Murray’s agenda and he raised the bar of expectation for Wimbledon by triumphing at Queen’s club for the second time in his career. Murray then sailed through the early stages of Wimbledon, battering Richard Gasquet and Feliciano Lopez in straight sets and setting up yet another semi-final meeting with Rafael Nadal.

Murray produced a fantastic opening set, taking it 7-5, but the match turned on its head when he missed a forehand at the net which would have given him two break points and the chance for an early advantage in the second set. Nadal recovered, claimed the second set and then took his tennis to a whole new level as he hammered Murray to clinch the win in four sets. 

An early exit from the Canada masters against unfancied South African Kevin Anderson suggested that Murray might be about to suffer another slam hangover but he recovered well to triumph at the Cincinnati masters, sealing the title by handing Djokovic only his second defeat of the season.

Robin Haase nearly caused a huge stir at the US Open as he raced to a two-set lead against Murray in the second round, but the Scot again showed a lot of grit while his opponent visibly wilted, allowing him to get the win in five sets. Murray followed this with another smooth passage to the semi-final, but for the third time of the season he came up against Rafael Nadal and for the third time he was comprehensively beaten.

Murray got his revenge by beating the Spaniard in October, but unfortunately it was in the less illustrious surroundings of the Japan Open. He followed that up with winning the Shanghai masters, a result that lifted him above Roger Federer to third in the world rankings and he went into the season-ending world tour finals with high hopes.

However, he suffered defeat to David Ferrer in his opening group match and was forced to withdraw from the tournament with a groin injury. Federer went on to claim the title which meant that Murray would finish the year ranked fourth in the world for a fourth straight year.

Murray now talks cautiously about his chances of winning a grand slam. In previous years it was a matter of when, not if, but with the tremendous strength at the top of the men’s game right now it is far from a foregone conclusion that the Scot will win a major championship.

Djokovic looks like he will be the man to beat next season, but he has struggled for form and fitness since winning the US Open and repeating his incredible 2011 will be no mean feat. Nadal seems to have Murray’s number in the big matches, but there continues to be question marks over how long his career can last because of his brutal and intense style.

If Murray is to clinch the big one, it will take an incredible effort. Few predicted that Djokovic would have such a breakout year, and who’s to say that in a year’s time we won’t be talking about a lad from Dunblane having one the greatest seasons in tennis history?