A look at Brit’s number one, Andy Murray – Tennis Special
The British number one, Andy Murray is holding the fourth place in the world tennis rankings of male players. The Scottish born is one of the most promising tennis players in the recent years and has gained big name in very short
time. He has bagged 17 ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) championship titles and has made to the finals of the Grand Slam events on three different occasions.
Murray also enjoyed the second rank in men’s ratings which merely lasted for a fortnight (from 17 to 31 August 2009). The Briton has been more successful on the faster surfaces like the hard courts but has been practicing very
hard during the last couple of years to be an equal expert on the clay surfaces as well. Many critics praise Andy Murray for his unmatchable ability of reading his opponents’ game quickly and then re-devising his own game plan accordingly. It is said that
Murray always has backup plans at the back of his mind for any erupting adverse situations in a tennis game. Many rate this proficiency of his to be the key success factor in his game.
The Briton has appeared in the final of the US Open in 2008 and has been featuring the finals of the Australian Open for the past two years. Sad to say, he won none of the Grand Slam finals in any of his campaigns, despite possessing
a career success rate of about 75 percent.
The Scot stepped into his professional career in 2005 when he was ranked at 407th place. His emphatic performances in the Future events and a brilliant run at Wimbledon propelled him to the list of top 200 tennis professionals.
Murray continued impressing the tennis fans with his aggressive game play. His noticeable appearance at Wimbledon and the Master Series recognized him as a potentially sound player. His wrist injury left him aside from pro tennis
for some time and he missed the French Open and Wimbledon in 2007. The Briton won his third ATP title on his return from injury at the St. Petersburg Open and ended the year at number 11 in the rankings.
Murray climbed to the top ten players’ list in early 2008 after his victory at Qatar ExxonMobil Open. He was not successful at the Grand Slam Down Under but soon afterwards, he defeated the world number one, Roger Federer in Dubai
to come under the spot light. Murray made to the quarter-final of Wimbledon for the first time in his career in the same year but was not able to convert this opportunity. The Scot got another shot at a Grand Slam title at the US Open where he lost to Federer
in the final in straight sets.
Murray became the first British to win five tournaments in a calendar year, including two Masters Series events, finishing the year as number four in the ratings. Murray continued his good form in the next year and continued his
inclination reaching the quarter-finals or the semi-finals of Major tournaments with ease but failing to take the pressure of the big games.
Andy Murray became the first ever British player to compete in the final of more than one Grand Slam finals when he qualified for the Australian Open final in 2010. He was denied yet another time by Roger Federer who outplayed
him in straight sets.
The current year started by rating Murray at the fourth spot but Robin Soderling demoted him to the fifth spot with his consistent performances. Murray qualified to the final of the Australian Open 2011 but was devastated by Novak
Djokovic of Serbia in straight sets, after which Murray announced to take a short lay-off from professional tennis to regain his strength and work on his weaknesses.
The Briton had another run till the semi-final stage of Roland Garros, losing to the Spaniard, Rafael Nadal but bagged his 17th championship title at AEGON Championships to enter Wimbledon with commanding confidence.
Murray repeated his habit yet another time at the third Grand Slam of the year, making it to the semi-final and losing to Nadal.
Murray’s abilities as an established player are reckoned by all but his droughts at the Grand Slam events always leave a mark on his career as the world number four.
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