Wimbledon 2010: can Andy Murray win a Grand Slam this year?
With a tag of being the most prestigious and oldest tennis tournaments in the world, Wimbledon is about to start in traditional style in under a week’s time. The tournament is taking place at the All England Club in London since 1877. All the top ranked tennis players participate in the tournament which is listed as one of the four Grand Slam events in the year. In this perspective, let us evaluate the chances of Andy Murray in the upcoming Wimbledon 2010.
Murray made his way into the semi-finals of the tournament last which means that the Scottish professional tennis player will be expecting to go one step ahead this season and will try his level best to reach the finals. Previously, the 23-year-old Andy has already reached the finals of the Australian as well as the U.S. Open. However, the Scot does not seem to be ideally prepared for the upcoming Wimbledon this time round. Murray showed a disappointing performance at the French Open earlier this season as he only made it to the fourth round of the tournament. If that sort of form continues, will he really be able to go all the way?
What actually favours Murray is the World Cup. Some of his concentration during the Wimbledon will definitely shift towards other major sporting events particularly if England proceeds to the next stage of the football World Cup in South Africa. Wimbledon is normally the central point during the summer and Murray has the burden of an entire country on his shoulders. While a majority of the people will still be expecting that he performs well, the football World Cup is expected to take a majority of the limelight. This will likely provide a chance for Murray to relax and enjoy his game of tennis, something which he has not done in the recent past.
Andy Murray still faces a lot of criticism in spite of being ranked the number four player in the world of tennis and they will perhaps stay with him until he wins a Grand Slam. Whenever tennis pundits talk about Murray, they stress that he is just so young and should become physically fitter and stronger. This at times irritates the 23-year-old Andy Murray who has been receiving the ‘young’ player tag for a long time. Players like Djokovic and Nadal are almost his age and they have succeeded on the biggest events but Murray hasn’t been able to do it yet. However, Murray’s age is a huge bonus for him and if he remains fit, he will get many more chances to prove his critics wrong.
The competition this season is going to be tough beyond any measure of speculation. Nadal will be in full form to regain a title that he never missed in actuality. Federer on the other hand is fighting with danger due to his poor form. However, the world number one is capable enough to win on different surfaces. Power server Andy Roddick from America who last season missed out his win over Federer is another dangerous player that cannot be ignored in any case.
So Murray will have to squeeze all these quality players if he wants to seize the title. The most important question is will he be able to do that? The youngster should just try his best to pass through the first few rounds quickly without wasting too much time contrary to the French Open where he was engrossed in a grand five set fight match in the first round of the tournament. If he manages to do that, no body in the world can stop him to claim the trophy. All he needs to do is to perform consistently throughout the tournament.
A couple of top ranked players also speak highly of Murray’s class and quality of play. They all believe that the man has the ability to win a Grand Slam title. However, keeping in mind his present form and fitness will Murray really be able to meet the expectations of every one?
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