Wimbledon 2011

[Sir David Gray]

The biggest two weeks of the tennis calendar are fast approaching and today the draw was made for the main draw of The Championships.

Andy Murray will play Daniel Gimeno Traver in his opening round match, defending champion Rafael Nadal will play Michael Russell, Roger Federer faces Mikhail Kukushkin and Novak Djokovic will play Jeremy Chardy.

Amazingly, though, the biggest story of the first round draw goes to two players who are further down the rankings.

After their five set marathon which resulted in 138 games being played in the decider, John Isner and Nicholas Mahut have been drawn to face each other once again in the opening round.

I wonder what the odds will be on another 70-68 scoreline in the fifth set. :greengrin

The first seed that Murray could face would be the 27th seed, Marin Cilic, in the third round. They should have faced each other at Queen's last week but Cilic pulled out.

In the last 16, Murray could play Stanislas Wawrinka, who he also played at that stage of the tournament in '09.

In the quarter finals, Murray may face Andy Roddick, who he destroyed at Queen's last weekend.

And in the semis, should Murray get that far, it may be Rafael Nadal who is lying in wait for him.

Murray cannot play Djokovic or Federer until the final.

All that is a long way off though and on paper it does look like quite a tough draw for Murray. He shouldn't have too many problems in the opening couple of rounds but guys like Cilic, Wawrinka and Roddick are experienced pros and won't be easy to beat.

Of course, a lot of things could happen before that stage of the tournament and Murray must take one match at a time.

Dan Cox plays Sergiy Stakhovsky, Dan Evans plays Florian Mayer and James Ward plays Michael Llodra.

[HibbyAndy]

Cillic in the 3rd round is a shocker!..I didnt really expect Andy to get someone half decent till bout the 4th round, Still fancy him to play Nadal in the semi's But like you say FB he has his work cut out if he wants to go far in the tournament dispensing the possibility of players like Wawrinka (Hate that spotty faced canute), And Roddick.

Go Andy :aok:

[Sir David Gray]

Cillic in the 3rd round is a shocker!..I didnt really expect Andy to get someone half decent till bout the 4th round, Still fancy him to play Nadal in the semi's But like you say FB he has his work cut out if he wants to go far in the tournament dispensing the possibility of players like Wawrinka (Hate that spotty faced canute), And Roddick.

Go Andy :aok:

There's 4 seeds in all the 8 sections of the draw, which takes you up to the last 16. In Murray's section, the seeds are Murray, Cilic, Gasquet and Wawrinka.

That basically means that if the draw goes according to plan, all the seeds will begin to play each other from the third round onwards.

The good thing for Murray is that Cilic does not come into Wimbledon in the best of form and he doesn't have a great record at Wimbledon either (his best performance was in '08 when he got to the last 16). He may even struggle a bit in his first round match against Ivan Ljubicic.

I would expect Murray's first real test not to come before the last 16.

[Sir David Gray]

Order of play for day one has been announced;

Defending champion, Rafael Nadal, will be up first on Centre Court against Michael Russell, with that match starting at 1pm.

Andy Murray kicks off his tournament against Daniel Gimeno Traver in the third match of the day on Centre Court, so that match should be on at around 4pm-ish.

Other Brits in action tomorrow are;

Katie O'Brien v Kimiko Date Krumm (12pm on Court 2)
Naomi Broady v Anne Keothavong (approx. 5.30pm on Court 12)
Sergiy Stakhovsky v Dan Cox (approx 3.30pm on Court 14)

[Sir David Gray]

Oh well, that'll be British player number one out already!

17 minutes played and Katie O'Brien has already lost the opening set 6-0 to Kimiko Date Krumm. :rolleyes:

She's just won the opening game of the second set though! :thumbsup:

[Sir David Gray]

Second set was better but Date Krumm beats O'Brien 6-0 7-5 so the first British player goes out after about an hour.

Oh well...

Rafa just starting on Centre Court just now. He's 1-1 in the opening set.

[The Mook]

Oh well, that'll be British player number one out already!

17 minutes played and Katie O'Brien has already lost the opening set 6-0 to Kimiko Date Krumm. :rolleyes:

She's just won the opening game of the second set though! :thumbsup:

Just heard that Date Krumm is 40, retired back in 1996 and decided to make a comeback 12 years later :greengrin

[Sylar]

Schiavone vs Dokic on centre court just now.

Looks like it's a bit chilly :greengrin

[Craig_in_Prague]

Schiavone vs Dokic on centre court just now.

Looks like it's a bit chilly :greengrin

Could hang your coat up :wink:

[Sir David Gray]

Rain's arrived and they're currently off the court until the Centre Court roof is covered.

Another British player is in trouble as Dan Cox lost the first set to Sergiy Stakhovsky, 6-2.

[HibbyAndy]

I love watching Dokic, She just has so much grit and determination, Will to win and has that eye of the Tiger. She's had many many problems going on in her personal life over the years but when she plays Tennis its like she forgets all whats going on in her life, The Tennis court is her sanctuary :agree:

Piled on the pounds as far as i can see though,But still a great player and back in the top 50..And her chest is amazing :greengrin

[hibsbollah]

Why is Dokic and Sciavonne so early? Surely theyre both seeds?

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

I love watching Dokic, She just has so much grit and determination, Will to win and has that eye of the Tiger. She's had many many problems going on in her personal life over the years but when she plays Tennis its like she forgets all whats going on in her life, The Tennis court is her sanctuary :agree:

Piled on the pounds as far as i can see though,But still a great player and back in the top 50..And her chest is amazing :greengrin

First 10 lines were a good review of the ladies tennis.
Line 11, seems fair enough!

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Judging by the spacing of the txt on my phone anyway!

[Sir David Gray]

Why is Dokic and Sciavonne so early? Surely theyre both seeds?

Schiavone's a seed, Dokic is currently ranked 45th in the world and only the top 32 are seeds.

She's actually a lot higher than she was a few months ago. At the start of the year, she was outside the top 100.

Andy's just coming on! :partyhibb

[Craig_in_Prague]

This chap is given Murray a good match.......

Although 1st sets tend to be like that........if he wins this one, I'd imagine he'll win 3-0.....

[Barney McGrew]

This chap is given Murray a good match.........

It's going to be a bit more than that by the looks of it.

He's at the top of his game and Murray is all over the place. Andy needs to get his finger out pronto or he's going to be watching the rest of Wimbledon fortnight in his house.

[bingo70]

It's going to be a bit more than that by the looks of it.

He's at the top of his game and Murray is all over the place. Andy needs to get his finger out pronto or he's going to be watching the rest of Wimbledon fortnight in his house.

I think he'll be alright, never heard of this guy so i'm guessing he's not used to best of 5 sets so although he's going out all guns blazing just now he's likely to tire, the adrenelin will wear off pretty soon i'd imagine.

IMO Murray will win this 3-1

[lyonhibs]

A lot of supposition and arrogance going on in the commentary box about Traver 'dropping his standards'. Murray needs to improve by a factor of 3 at least to win this match. Massively dissapointing so far from Murray.

[bingo70]

A lot of supposition and arrogance going on in the commentary box about Traver 'dropping his standards'. Murray needs to improve by a factor of 3 at least to win this match. Massively dissapointing so far from Murray.

There's a reason for that though, this guy is playing at way above his level, in a best of 3 sets match you are more likely to oget away with it than in a 5 set match, sooner or later his standards are likely to drop and when he does Murray has got to make it count which i'm sure he will

[AFKA5814_Hibs]

Murray turning the screw now. 4-0 up in 3rd set.

[hibsbollah]

I'm feeling sorry for the Spaniard now. Hes totally lost it. He started off superbly as well.

[lyonhibs]

aye ok, the Spainard has totally fallen apart here. Mentally and - it seems - physically. Bit of a shame to be honest.

[HibbyAndy]

Murray was outstanding after the 1st set...Infact he was actually quite good in the 1st set but the Spaniard played way above his station :agree:..He totally fell apart after an hour.Gasquet potentially in the 4th round looks a cracking match.

[HibbyAndy]

aye ok, the Spainard has totally fallen apart here. Mentally and - it seems - physically. Bit of a shame to be honest.

:agree:

Totally crumbled.

[Sir David Gray]

Only caught the first couple games of the first set and then I had to go out.

Disappointing that Murray dropped a set but it happens. Nadal didn't play well throughout the first week of the French Open, got taken to five sets in the first round and then in the second week, when it really mattered, he turned on the style and eventually won the title.

He'll just be pleased that he was on Centre Court today and he was able to get his match finished and get into the next round. With the weather today, if he had been on any other court, the chances are he wouldn't have been able to get finished today and would have needed to come back tomorrow.

He'll likely be playing Tobias Kamke next in the second round on Wednesday as he is two sets to love up against Blaz Kavcic, although Kamke is losing the third set 5-1.

Tomorrow, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are in first round action, with both being on Centre Court.

Brit-watch tomorrow will be;

James Ward vs Michael Llodra (approx. 3pm on Court 2)
Mathilde Johansson vs Heather Watson (approx. 7pm on Court 3)
Florian Mayer vs Dan Evans (approx. 3pm on Court 5)
Naomi Broady vs Anne Keothavong (12pm on Court 12)
Elena Baltacha vs Mona Barthel (approx. 4pm on Court 12)
Sergiy Stakhovsky vs Dan Cox (approx. 2pm on Court 14)
MATCH TO RESUME AT 6-2 0-1.
Klara Zakopalova vs Emily Webley-Smith (approx. 6.30pm on Court 14)
Angelique Kerber vs Laura Robson (not before 5pm, court TBA)

The rematch of John Isner vs Nicolas Mahut is tomorrow as well so that might be worth a wee watch. :greengrin

[Sir David Gray]

Two Brits have fallen so far on day two of The Championships.

Dan Cox lost his match, which was carried over from yesterday to Sergiy Stakhovsky, in straight sets and Naomi Broady lost to fellow British player, Anne Keothavong.

That last result does obviously mean that Britain will have at least two players in round two, after Andy Murray's success yesterday.

Keothavong will now face number eight seed, Petra Kvitova, in the next round.

[Sir David Gray]

A wee update;

Federer wins the opening set against Mikhail Kukushkin in a tiebreak.

Fernando Verdasco has fought back from two sets down against Radek Stepanek and it is now 6-6 in the deciding set. Remember there's no tiebreak in the decider so could it be a repeat of Isner/Mahut last year? :greengrin

Elena Baltacha has just taken the first set, 6-2, against young German Mona Barthel.

Dan Evans lost the opening set against Florian Mayer, in a tiebreak.

[Sir David Gray]

Britain will have a third player into the 2nd round as Elena Baltacha has just beaten Mona Barthel 6-2 6-4.

Dan Evans has just dropped the second set to Florian Mayer, despite serving for it at 5-4.

Roger Federer is through to round two after beating Mikhail Kukushkin 7-6 6-4 6-2.

[Sir David Gray]

For the third year in a row, only one British male will be in the second round of Wimbledon. Dan Evans, Dan Cox and James Ward all made first round exits this afternoon which only leaves Andy Murray to fly the flag.

Evans had a creditable result against Florian Mayer as he narrowly lost the opening two sets in tiebreaks and then took the third set 6-3 but he lost the fourth set 6-4.

Ward, who had a great run at Queen's just over a week ago, lost out in straight sets to Michael Llodra.

In the women's draw, Laura Robson and Heather Watson still haven't played their first round matches yet so they will take place tomorrow.

Emily Webley-Smith lost an epic match against Klara Zakopalova 6-3 5-7 8-6.

Brit-watch tomorrow;

Andy Murray vs Tobias Kamke (approx. 3.30pm on Court 1)
Anne Keothavong vs Petra Kvitova (approx. 5.30pm on Court 1)
Mathilde Johansson vs Heather Watson (12pm on Court 3)
Angelique Kerber vs Laura Robson (approx. 4pm on Court 18)

There was no repeat of last year's marathon between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut as Isner took the match in straight sets to get through to the second round.

This year, they played two fewer sets, 149 fewer games, the match was played over two fewer days and the match time was 9 hours and 2 minutes shorter than last year.

Novak Djokovic also won today in straight sets against Jeremy Chardy.

I leave tomorrow to go down to London, where I have 4 days at Wimbledon. Really looking forward to it so we'll need someone else to do the updates on this thread over the next week as I'm not back until next Wednesday.

Let's hope Andy Murray is still in the mix by the end of next Wednesday as that will mean he will have made the semi finals of Wimbledon for the third successive year. :aok:

[ArabHibee]

Mon the Williams!

[Sir David Gray]

Mon the Williams!

It was great to see Serena back on Centre Court after almost a year out through illness and injury.

I think her long layoff will mean that another title will be a bit too much to ask but with the Williams sisters you can never write them off as they are both great champions.

[Pete]

Roger Federer has now come in from 5/2 to become the 2/1 favourite to win ahead of Nadal with William Hill.

I don't know why but I want Federer to win. Maybe because he is getting on and people are dissmissing him as some sort of has-been....More the fool them...and I don't think Nadal should be taking over his major record on the back of winning one tournament x amount of times.

C'mon Roger. Andy can have a shot when he retires!:greengrin

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Extremely fine effort by Kirsty on SSN Wimbledon Report just now!

[Wembley67]

FH have you ever played tennis?

[Betty Boop]

What the heck is Venus Williams wearing ? :greengrin Mon the wee Japanese wifie ! :thumbsup:

[iwasthere1972]

What the heck is Venus Williams wearing ? :greengrin Mon the wee Japanese wifie ! :thumbsup:

:agree:

That annoying voice of Tracey Austin and the grunting of Venus Williams is spoiling this match which is otherwise outstanding.

[shamo9]

That first set especially was probably the finest piece of women's tennis I've ever seen. Date-Krumm is a real hero, and the match places her younger contemporaries in a very dim light indeed.

[iwasthere1972]

A brave attempt by the 40 year old Date-Krumm but sadly Venus Williams won.

[hibsbollah]

How many times does the director want to focus.on Murrays burd Kim?
Incidentally, can anyone think of a major sports star who has an ugly (or st least not model looks) partner?

[ArabHibee]

How many times does the director want to focus.on Murrays burd Kim?
Incidentally, can anyone think of a major sports star who has an ugly (or st least not model looks) partner?

Andre Agassi :wink:

[hibsbollah]

Andre Agassi :wink:

Really? I always had a bit of a soft spot for Steffi.

[Wheat Hound]

Michael Mols.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

How many times does the director want to focus.on Murrays burd Kim?
Incidentally, can anyone think of a major sports star who has an ugly (or st least not model looks) partner?

Mike Tindall?

[hibsbollah]

Serena having another epic match on tv now...womens tennis has been great so far this year.

[heretoday]

:agree:

That annoying voice of Tracey Austin and the grunting of Venus Williams is spoiling this match which is otherwise outstanding.


I love watching the tennis but hate the commentary on BBC Wimbledon. They wheel out these smug, smart-mouthed types every year. McEnroe is one I particularly dislike. He's a man who has some apologies to make. BBC love his "edginess".

Boris Becker is okay. Mainly cos you can't understand a lot of what he says!

[hibsbollah]

Couldnt disagree more heretoday. McEnroe is a brilliant pundit...he just oozes personality, intelligence and has the authority of doing it at the highest level himself. He and Michael Johnson on athletics are massive coups for the BBC.

[JimBHibees]

Couldnt disagree more heretoday. McEnroe is a brilliant pundit...he just oozes personality, intelligence and has the authority of doing it at the highest level himself. He and Michael Johnson on athletics are massive coups for the BBC.

Totally agree McEnroe is the only one that makes BBC watchable though Tim is ok. Rusedski and Castle are particularly excruciating.

[heretoday]

Okay I stand alone in my dislike of Mac. I just remember how annoying he used to be as a player.

Kicking up a fuss when things were going against him and abusing poor old Mr Miggins the line judge.

John Inverdale - now there's a guy I'd like to batter with a Wilson racket!

[Ed De Gramo]

come on Laura :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[Dashing Bob S]

It's the time of year when I have to constantly deploy that tired old lie "it's the rallies that make woman's tennis so utterly fascinating" when the wife catches me fixated on the screen.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

What the heck is Venus Williams wearing ? :greengrin

That ridiculous monstrosity is on court again.

Shes got that dodgy oufit on again too!

[seanraff07]

Robson v Sharapova was better than watching porn :greengrin

What time is Murray set to play on Centre Court tonight?

[heretoday]

Robson needs to lose a bit of weight I'd say. She plods around a bit. Gives it a good belt though.

[iwasthere1972]

Robson v Sharapova was better than watching porn :greengrin

What time is Murray set to play on Centre Court tonight?

Hantuchova v Azarenka is currently being played on the BBC multiscreen. Women tennis players make some strange noises and they rank up there with the strangest.

Currently 3-6 6-3 0-1

I would guess that Andy Murray will be on in about 45 minutes or so depending on how long it takes for the women to finish the third set.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Murrays serving is poor tonight, he is struggling. 1 set all though, so, still a long way to go.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Murray wins 3-1
Doesnae half make life hard for himself at times.

[Barney McGrew]

Murray wins 3-1
Doesnae half make life hard for himself at times.

He had a difficult opponent tonight though, and his record against him in the past has been pretty ropey.

[HibbyAndy]

He had a difficult opponent tonight though, and his record against him in the past has been pretty ropey.

:agree:

Lbjucic got over 70% 1st serves in and still lost!

Magical Murray

[ArabHibee]

Question for the tennis buffs on here.

Has the dates for Wimbledon being played changed? I remember Wimbledon fortnight being in the school holidays. The schools aren't even off on holiday yet. I'm pretty sure that Wimbledon used to be played towards the end of July. Anyone know?

[heretoday]

Question for the tennis buffs on here.

Has the dates for Wimbledon being played changed? I remember Wimbledon fortnight being in the school holidays. The schools aren't even off on holiday yet. I'm pretty sure that Wimbledon used to be played towards the end of July. Anyone know?


The great men's final of 1980 was played on Saturday 5 July. I do know that.

[Removed]

The great men's final of 1980 was played on Saturday 5 July. I do know that.

I always knew that Dundee lived in a different time zone to the rest of the country :agree:

[seanraff07]

Question for the tennis buffs on here.

Has the dates for Wimbledon being played changed? I remember Wimbledon fortnight being in the school holidays. The schools aren't even off on holiday yet. I'm pretty sure that Wimbledon used to be played towards the end of July. Anyone know?

Yep, you're right.

I used to go to a wee town the first week of the summer holidays, I remember watching Wimbledon there.

But now I struggle to watch much of it cause I'm at school the whole way through the tournament.

[Removed]

I used to go to a wee town the first week of the summer holidays, I remember watching Wimbledon there.

:hmmm: Dundee?

[seanraff07]

:hmmm: Dundee?

Not there, although I've always had some respect for that town ever since Hearts were on the verge of the title...

[Removed]

Not there, although I've always had some respect for that town ever since Hearts were on the verge of the title...

:agree: fair point. The city of discovery, where the yams discovered they had nae bottle :faf:

[DaveF]

Only watched a wee bit of the tennis this year, mainly because of the grunters and time wasters - It spoils the sport altogether.

I mean, does Nadal have to pick his arse at every point?

Does Djokovic really need to bounce the ball a dozen times before serving?

Does every frickng player sweat so much they need a towel every 30 seconds?

Does Sharapova squeal like that in bed?

It's Booooooring.

[HibbyAndy]

Only watched a wee bit of the tennis this year, mainly because of the grunters and time wasters - It spoils the sport altogether.

I mean, does Nadal have to pick his arse at every point?

Does Djokovic really need to bounce the ball a dozen times before serving?

Does every frickng player sweat so much they need a towel every 30 seconds?

Does Sharapova squeal like that in bed?

It's Booooooring.


All very valid points Dave :agree: I refuse to watch the William sisters as there grunting is over exaggerated and pathetic IMO ..Simply no need. I watch Sharapova though as i like to enjoy her sublime tennis skills.

[shamo9]

On the topic of women grunting, Schiavone's distinctive 'a-he!' always brings a smile to my face. The low pitch, the Italian accent and the subtle variation in inflection depending on her position in the court also adds a great deal of emotional depth to the grunt.

Ah, Francesca:greengrin

[heretoday]

Is there something wrong at Ladbrokes? I went along to get a price on Serena Williams this afternoon and there was no info on the wall screens about tennis. The woman at the desk said she'd "have a look online" and proceeded to surf her machine. Sorry only men's prices at the moment came the eventual answer.

So I went to Wm Hills which is very near and all the info was readily displayed.

I'm not normally a "punter". Has Ladbrokes gone back a bit or what?

[Removed]

All very valid points Dave :agree: I refuse to watch the William sisters as there grunting is over exaggerated and pathetic IMO ..Simply no need. I watch Sharapova though as i like to enjoy her sublime tennis skills.

:faf: who edited this

[Removed]

BBC SPORTS NEWS: Brave Laura Robson undone by super Maria Sharapova.

I wished.

[Danderhall Hibs]

Question for the tennis buffs on here.

Has the dates for Wimbledon being played changed? I remember Wimbledon fortnight being in the school holidays. The schools aren't even off on holiday yet. I'm pretty sure that Wimbledon used to be played towards the end of July. Anyone know?

Wimbledon was definitely on during my school holdays as well (mid-80s to mid-90s for me)- maybe the school holidays used to start last week of June instead of July?

[Danderhall Hibs]

Only watched a wee bit of the tennis this year, mainly because of the grunters and time wasters - It spoils the sport altogether.

I mean, does Nadal have to pick his arse at every point?

Does Djokovic really need to bounce the ball a dozen times before serving?

Does every frickng player sweat so much they need a towel every 30 seconds?

Does Sharapova squeal like that in bed?

It's Booooooring.

Sorry Dave - I can only answer one of those questions with any certainty.

[MountcastleHibs]

Wimbledon was definitely on during my school holdays as well (mid-80s to mid-90s for me)- maybe the school holidays used to start last week of June instead of July?

:agree: I don't think its the Championships getting earlier. It's school holidays getting later

[HibbyAndy]

Wimbledon has NEVER changed dates, Its always been the End of June, It must be school holidays that are later.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Really enjoyed the Djokovic match yday, top entertainment!

[HibbyAndy]

Really enjoyed the Djokovic match yday, top entertainment!

:agree:

Baghdatis sure does play with a smile on his face.

[Hibs90]

Does Sharapova squeal like that in bed?


I can confirm this to be the case.

[Removed]

I can confirm this to be the case.

Danderhall got there before you :whistle:

[Hibs90]

Danderhall got there before you :whistle:

Oops. :rolleyes:

[Danderhall Hibs]

Danderhall got there before you :whistle:

Nah – I was talking about needing the towel between every point. :greengrin

[iwasthere1972]

Interesting story about Gasquet which I was unaware of.

Proved positive for cocaine and his excuse for it was that he didn't take it but had kissed a girl who had. He was cleared of the charge.

Never heard that one before.

Anyway 3-3 Gasquet-Murray.

[Removed]

Nah – I was talking about needing the towel between every point. :greengrin

Phew

Meeko, you're ok mate you can cancel that clinic appointment now :thumbsup:

[iwasthere1972]

Murray wins first set. 7-6 :thumbsup:

[iwasthere1972]

Murray wins first set. 7-6 :thumbsup:

[iwasthere1972]

I like John McEnroe as a commentator and was wondering if he gets £10 everytime he mentions Jimmy O'Connor. :wink:

[HibbyAndy]

Gasquet really had to win the 1st set to have any chance, After Murray won it you sensed that Gasqeut was finished, His body language was all wrong.

Very impressed with Murray so far at Wimbledon, He really does posses all the shots, Back hand is lethal, Fore hand is sensationsal, Slice drop shot, You name it Andy Murray has it in spades.

I know he was half joking when he said he wishes it thunders later on and rains, But Murray like me and many other would love it to Rain later, Make Nadal ( His potential semi final opponent) Have to play say 2 matches staggered over 2 or 3 days Whilst Andy continues to make opponents look Ridiculously stupid.

Ultra impressed with Murray. Keep it up son :aok:

[Liam89]

Glad to see he won in 3 sets today! I think he has a shot at winning. When he really needs the points and plays aggresively he is unplayable but too many times have I seen him sit back and not go for it which leaves him on the backfoot.

[HibbyAndy]

Glad to see he won in 3 sets today! I think he has a shot at winning. When he really needs the points and plays aggresively he is unplayable but too many times have I seen him sit back and not go for it which leaves him on the backfoot.

Spot on :agree:

When Murray really has to pull a point out the fire he does, How many times does he go a break point down and boom down an impressive 1st serve? Time and time again he plays the big points excellent.

Also agree I.E Aggressiveness , Murray's best form of defence really is it be more aggressive, He HAS to be more aggressive if he wants to win Wimbledon IMO..But in saying that since this tournament started he HAS been more aggressive, Keep it up Andy :aok:

[Liam89]

Federer a set down and Nadal with an ankle injury... Is this the year? :wink:

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Gasquet really had to win the 1st set to have any chance, After Murray won it you sensed that Gasqeut was finished, His body language was all wrong.

Very impressed with Murray so far at Wimbledon, He really does posses all the shots, Back hand is lethal, Fore hand is sensationsal, Slice drop shot, You name it Andy Murray has it in spades.

I know he was half joking when he said he wishes it thunders later on and rains, But Murray like me and many other would love it to Rain later, Make Nadal ( His potential semi final opponent) Have to play say 2 matches staggered over 2 or 3 days Whilst Andy continues to make opponents look Ridiculously stupid.

Ultra impressed with Murray. Keep it up son :aok:

I've got to say i think he has only just been getting the job done up until the end of set 1 today then stepped it up a bit. Hope i'm wrong 'cos i'm desperate to see him win a Major, but, if he gets further than his seeding suggests i'll be equally surprised and delighted!

[hibsbollah]

Nadal Del Potro match now is ridiculously high quality tennis.

[HibbyAndy]

Nadal Del Potro match now is ridiculously high quality tennis.

:agree: Stunning Tennis.

Hopefully Nadal gets papped in the Qaurters.

[hibsbollah]

:agree: Stunning Tennis.

Hopefully Nadal gets papped in the Qaurters.

Nadals girlfriend/ wife is very beautiful, unquestionably. But youd have thought she'd have taught him not to pick the crack out of his erse at every second serve. Id make sure he washed them with soap and hot water before I shook his hand.

[hibsbollah]

Tracy Austin=Carmella Soprano.

[MountcastleHibs]

Nadal away for an MRI scan on his foot. Apparently 'worried' about it.

[Removed]

Nadal away for an MRI scan on his foot. Apparently 'worried' about it.

Big pussy. I've had an MRI and it was fine. They even let me take my own cd in to listen to :thumbsup:

[Danderhall Hibs]

Big pussy. I've had an MRI and it was fine. They even let me take my own cd in to listen to :thumbsup:

:hilarious

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Extremely fine effort by Kirsty on SSN Wimbledon Report just now!

Georgie T's turn this morning!

[easty]

Sharapova is absolutely schooling Cibulkova just now.

It's not been anywhere near as entertaining as the Lisicki game from earlier today.

[HibbyAndy]

Sharapova is absolutely schooling Cibulkova just now.

It's not been anywhere near as entertaining as the Lisicki game from earlier today.

:agree:

Do like Sharapova but the screaming noises that come from her are cringeworthy imo.

Bartoli earlier against Lisicki was superb to take the 2nd set in a tie break after saving 3 match points but she simply had nothing left in the tank for the final set.

Mon Murray the morra!

[iwasthere1972]

:agree:

Do like Sharapova but the screaming noises that come from her are cringeworthy imo.

Bartoli earlier against Lisicki was superb to take the 2nd set in a tie break after saving 3 match points but she simply had nothing left in the tank for the final set.

Mon Murray the morra!

God help us if Sharapova meets Azerenka in the final.

Personally I think all this grunting and funny noise making should be banned. It's annoying for us as spectators and must get to the opposition. It just appears to be the trend nowadays. Funnily enough you rarely see it in the mens game.

[lapsedhibee]

Bartoli earlier against Lisicki was superb to take the 2nd set in a tie break after saving 3 match points but she simply had nothing left in the tank for the final set.

Possibly tired out by the extra match she was playing in her own wee world all through the time she was on court playing a real match against Lisicki. Bartoli seems a bit bonkers.


Robson needs to lose a bit of weight I'd say. She plods around a bit. Gives it a good belt though.
Need a good belt if you're a fat*******.

Think the gentlemen's semifinals - or possibly ladies' and gentlemen's - are being shown in 3D tellybox. Anyone know where that's available in Edinburgh? :dunno:

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

Think the gentlemen's semifinals - or possibly ladies' and gentlemen's - are being shown in 3D tellybox. Anyone know where that's available in Edinburgh? :dunno:

The Chanter in Bread Street has it.

[easty]

Possibly tired out by the extra match she was playing in her own wee world all through the time she was on court playing a real match against Lisicki. Bartoli seems a bit bonkers.




She really does, I was thinking just that when I was watching it. :agree:

Certainly seems to have some kind of hyperactivity disorder or something.

[iwasthere1972]

Strange that we haven't heard from FalkirkHibee especially on a tennis thread and one that he started.

Hope he's okay - Maybe he's on his hols? Anybody know:aok:

[iwasthere1972]

Djokovic struggling in the second set to the new Australian No.1 Tomic. Djokovic took the first set but it looks like the second set will even the match up.

Could there be a shock result in store?


Edit: One set each.

[Hibs90]

What time is Murray on?

[iwasthere1972]

What time is Murray on?

After the Federer v Tsonga match which is currently 2-0 to Federer. Could be anywhere between 1-3 hours although if I was a betting man I would say it would be about an hour.

Edit: Tsonga up 3-1 in third set. RF to serve.

[iwasthere1972]

Doubles matches - Why do the players find the need to give each other a wee touch on the hand everytime they win a point? I've even seen them doing it when they lose the point. :confused: Looks a bit camp when it's the mens doubles.

[hibsbollah]

Does anyone else think Federer is deeply annoying and a bit of a ponce? Im guessing I might be in the minority here but im probably a bit of a xenophobe about the Swiss, they annoy me. There,ive said it. Im a big racist.

Tsonga coming back into it nicely.

[Liam89]

Absolutely brilliant stuff from Tsonga!

[hibsbollah]

Youve gotta love the guy. Some cracking volleys.

[Captain Trips]

Great stuff from Tsonga. Murray must have a real chance this year if he plays to his best.

[shamo9]

Let the 'Federer is finished' talk begin. Very surprising considering he was coming from his finest French Open in terms of performance.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

If Murray continues playing everything to Lopez's b-hand this should be over very quickly.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

If Murray continues playing everything to Lopez's b-hand this should be over very quickly.

As I was saying!

Happy days!

[LancashireHibby]

Sheer class at times, well done Murray.

[HibbyAndy]

Brilliant again from Murray, I really hope he aint injured or ruptured something tho..Was clearly wincing with pain for a good 20 minute after the initial incident.

Straight forward match as was his 4th round match whilst Nadal dropped a set in both matches and has played way more game time than Andy.

Go Andy, Take the Spaniard in the semis! :aok:

[Westie1875]

Anyone think Tsonga can beat Djokovic in the semis?

[LancashireHibby]

Anyone think Tsonga can beat Djokovic in the semis?

Got to be considered a possibility given the way he was bouncing about in his quarter, the guy will be buzzing.

[lapsedhibee]

The Chanter in Bread Street has it.

:aok:

[Sir David Gray]

Just back a few hours ago from my trip to Wimbledon. Unlike the past two years, this year was seriously interrupted by rain delays and that spoiled it quite a bit for me.

I was at Wimbledon on four days in the past week and this is what I saw;

Friday June 24th-Court 1

Maria Sharapova v Laura Robson

Robson started the match really well and should have won the first set. Sharapova's experience prevailed though and in the end she just had too much for Robson.

Venus Williams v Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez

Total waste of time. I have no idea how Sanchez had even got that far in the tournament. It was embarrassing.

Rafael Nadal v Gilles Muller

This was shaping up to be a decent match as Nadal was under real pressure. However he managed to win a tight opening set on a tiebreak. However, after that the Heavens opened and play was abandoned for the day shortly afterwards. I was gutted that I didn't see the whole of this match.

Saturday June 25th-Centre Court

Caroline Wozniacki v Jarmila Gajdosova

Waste of time, too one-sided.

Roger Federer v David Nalbandian

Waste of time, too one-sided.

Novak Djokovic v Marcos Baghdatis

Great match, it made the whole day worthwhile. Really enjoyed this match and it was a shame for Baghdatis that it didn't go to five sets as he deserved that.

Monday June 27th-Court 2

Maria Sharapova v Shuai Peng

Too one-sided, although Peng wasn't that bad.

Caroline Wozniacki v Dominika Cibulkova

Decent match, although I missed most of it as I went to watch Murray vs Gasquet on the Big Screen on the hill.

Tomas Berdych v Mardy Fish

Garbage match, Berdych was awful and the match was too one-sided.

Feliciano Lopez/Andrea Petkovic v David Marrero/Andrea Hlavackova

Not the biggest fan of doubles but it was a decent match, although Lopez was by far the best player on the court.

Tuesday June 28th-Court 2

Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan v Simon Aspelin/Paul Hanley

Very good match which was spoiled by the awful weather. We only got 30 minutes before the rain came, the thunder and lightning was unbelievable and this lasted for about 4 hours. They came back on court and we only got another 2 hours of play in before it was stopped again because of more rain and that was it for the day. The match was stopped at two sets all and three games all in the decider.

As I was coming home, I was listening to the Federer/Tsonga match and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. At two sets up at Wimbledon, Federer should have been home and hosed but all credit to Tsonga. There is no doubt that he is the outsider out of all those who are left but he is certainly a dangerous opponent.

Novak Djokovic had to fight to beat the Australian qualifier Bernard Tomic but it was just one step too far for him. He will definitely be a threat in future years though.

Although Mardy Fish took a set off Nadal, he was never going to win today, with the best will in the world. He just doesn't have the ability or the shots to trouble someone of Nadal's class and his only real hope was that Nadal's injured foot would break down during the match. Unfortunately for him, that did not happen.

I saw most of Murray's match tonight against Feliciano Lopez and to be honest, it was a foregone conclusion. Like Fish, Lopez isn't really in Murray's league and provided that Murray played near his best today, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

It was a useful match for Murray to have today, though, as he prepares for Nadal on Friday. Lopez is a left hander, like Nadal, and it will have been good for Murray to get a taste of playing a "lefty" before he takes on Nadal.

The smart money will be on a Nadal vs Djokovic final but Tsonga and Murray are both more than capable of causing upsets. Although I really hope that I am proved wrong, I just don't see Murray beating Nadal over five sets at a Grand Slam semi final.

I just hope that he is fully fit for Friday. I noticed that he seemed to have a bit of a problem with his stomach area during the match today so hopefully that can get sorted out.

Tsonga's aggressive style of play can trouble Djokovic and if he serves as well as he did today then he may well find himself in Sunday's final. The problem he may have is that he might have just put so much, mentally and physically, into today's match that he will just be exhausted for Friday. Tsonga has a tendency for erratic performances and he is just as likely to come out on Friday and get beaten in straight sets as he is to knock out Djokovic.


FH have you ever played tennis?

Yes I play wheelchair tennis quite regularly. I wouldn't say I'm anything special but I really enjoy playing/watching the sport.


Strange that we haven't heard from FalkirkHibee especially on a tennis thread and one that he started.

Hope he's okay - Maybe he's on his hols? Anybody know:aok:

You clearly don't read my posts! :grr:

:wink:

I said in a post on page two that I was away to Wimbledon for a week and wouldn't be back until today.

[Liam89]

Just back a few hours ago from my trip to Wimbledon. Unlike the past two years, this year was seriously interrupted by rain delays and that spoiled it quite a bit for me.

I was at Wimbledon on four days in the past week and this is what I saw;

Friday June 24th-Court 1

Maria Sharapova v Laura Robson

Robson started the match really well and should have won the first set. Sharapova's experience prevailed though and in the end she just had too much for Robson.

Venus Williams v Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez

Total waste of time. I have no idea how Sanchez had even got that far in the tournament. It was embarrassing.

Rafael Nadal v Gilles Muller

This was shaping up to be a decent match as Nadal was under real pressure. However he managed to win a tight opening set on a tiebreak. However, after that the Heavens opened and play was abandoned for the day shortly afterwards. I was gutted that I didn't see the whole of this match.

Saturday June 25th-Centre Court

Caroline Wozniacki v Jarmila Gajdosova

Waste of time, too one-sided.

Roger Federer v David Nalbandian

Waste of time, too one-sided.

Novak Djokovic v Marcos Baghdatis

Great match, it made the whole day worthwhile. Really enjoyed this match and it was a shame for Baghdatis that it didn't go to five sets as he deserved that.

Monday June 27th-Court 2

Maria Sharapova v Shuai Peng

Too one-sided, although Peng wasn't that bad.

Caroline Wozniacki v Dominika Cibulkova

Decent match, although I missed most of it as I went to watch Murray vs Gasquet on the Big Screen on the hill.

Tomas Berdych v Mardy Fish

Garbage match, Berdych was awful and the match was too one-sided.

Feliciano Lopez/Andrea Petkovic v David Marrero/Andrea Hlavackova

Not the biggest fan of doubles but it was a decent match, although Lopez was by far the best player on the court.

Tuesday June 28th-Court 2

Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan v Simon Aspelin/Paul Hanley

Very good match which was spoiled by the awful weather. We only got 30 minutes before the rain came, the thunder and lightning was unbelievable and this lasted for about 4 hours. They came back on court and we only got another 2 hours of play in before it was stopped again because of more rain and that was it for the day. The match was stopped at two sets all and three games all in the decider.

As I was coming home, I was listening to the Federer/Tsonga match and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. At two sets up at Wimbledon, Federer should have been home and hosed but all credit to Tsonga. There is no doubt that he is the outsider out of all those who are left but he is certainly a dangerous opponent.

Novak Djokovic had to fight to beat the Australian qualifier Bernard Tomic but it was just one step too far for him. He will definitely be a threat in future years though.

Although Mardy Fish took a set off Nadal, he was never going to win today, with the best will in the world. He just doesn't have the ability or the shots to trouble someone of Nadal's class and his only real hope was that Nadal's injured foot would break down during the match. Unfortunately for him, that did not happen.

I saw most of Murray's match tonight against Feliciano Lopez and to be honest, it was a foregone conclusion. Like Fish, Lopez isn't really in Murray's league and provided that Murray played near his best today, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

It was a useful match for Murray to have today, though, as he prepares for Nadal on Friday. Lopez is a left hander, like Nadal, and it will have been good for Murray to get a taste of playing a "lefty" before he takes on Nadal.

The smart money will be on a Nadal vs Djokovic final but Tsonga and Murray are both more than capable of causing upsets. Although I really hope that I am proved wrong, I just don't see Murray beating Nadal over five sets at a Grand Slam semi final.

I just hope that he is fully fit for Friday. I noticed that he seemed to have a bit of a problem with his stomach area during the match today so hopefully that can get sorted out.

Tsonga's aggressive style of play can trouble Djokovic and if he serves as well as he did today then he may well find himself in Sunday's final. The problem he may have is that he might have just put so much, mentally and physically, into today's match that he will just be exhausted for Friday. Tsonga has a tendency for erratic performances and he is just as likely to come out on Friday and get beaten in straight sets as he is to knock out Djokovic.



Yes I play wheelchair tennis quite regularly. I wouldn't say I'm anything special but I really enjoy playing/watching the sport.



You clearly don't read my posts! :grr:

:wink:

I said in a post on page two that I was away to Wimbledon for a week and wouldn't be back until today.

Cheers for sharing your week at wimbledon with us, was a good wee read! :agree:

[Removed]

Cheers for sharing your week at wimbledon with us, was a good wee read! :agree:

Looking forward to a similar update soon from Old Trafford :greengrin

[moredun]

The smart money will be on a Nadal vs Djokovic final but Tsonga and Murray are both more than capable of causing upsets. Although I really hope that I am proved wrong, I just don't see Murray beating Nadal over five sets at a Grand Slam semi final.




He has done it before...

[Sir David Gray]

He has done it before...

Yes, I know he did it at the 2008 US Open but Nadal wasn't the defending champion and his record at that tournament had been pretty poor back then.

Nadal hasn't lost on the Wimbledon grass since 2007 and he is currently on a 19 match winning run at the tournament. The last time he failed to reach the final at Wimbledon was in 2005, when he was just 19 years old.

It will take a massive effort for Murray to knock Nadal out on Friday. When Federer won his 16th Grand Slam title last year, people said that this record would not be beaten for decades. Nadal is so good that it's quite conceivable that he could beat that in the next couple of years. He already has 10 titles to his name.

Murray will need to play the match of his life on Friday if he's going to win and even then it might not even be good enough.

I hope I am wrong because I would love nothing more than to see Murray lift the Wimbledon trophy on Sunday evening. I just personally don't see it happening.

[iwasthere1972]

Yes, I know he did it at the 2008 US Open but Nadal wasn't the defending champion and his record at that tournament had been pretty poor back then.

Nadal hasn't lost on the Wimbledon grass since 2007 and he is currently on a 19 match winning run at the tournament. The last time he failed to reach the final at Wimbledon was in 2005, when he was just 19 years old.

It will take a massive effort for Murray to knock Nadal out on Friday. When Federer won his 16th Grand Slam title last year, people said that this record would not be beaten for decades. Nadal is so good that it's quite conceivable that he could beat that in the next couple of years. He already has 10 titles to his name.

Murray will need to play the match of his life on Friday if he's going to win and even then it might not even be good enough.

I hope I am wrong because I would love nothing more than to see Murray lift the Wimbledon trophy on Sunday evening. I just personally don't see it happening.

Good to know you're okay. Where have you been? :greengrin

Have really enjoyed the tennis over the past 10 days or so and must say that I am beginning to follow the game more now than ever before. Maybe it's the fact that we now have someone from Britain that has a realistic chance of winning a Grand Slam. It's a massive improvement compared to Jeremy Bates and Tim Henman.

There's a number of things that do annoy me in the game. Firstly all this grunting, groaning and squealing noises that a large percentage of tennis players make. I personally think that it should be banned. What are your thoughts on it. Also why do players in the doubles matches insist on touching each others hand everytime they win a point? It just looks silly and unnecessary. The excessive use of having to use a towel also annoys me. I can't remember it being that way years ago.

Anyway looking forward to Friday. I think it could belong to Andy.

Glad you enjoyed your few days at Wimbers. :aok:

[lapsedhibee]

There's a number of things that do annoy me in the game. Firstly all this grunting, groaning and squealing noises that a large percentage of tennis players make. I personally think that it should be banned. What are your thoughts on it. Also why do players in the doubles matches insist on touching each others hand everytime they win a point? It just looks silly and unnecessary. The excessive use of having to use a towel also annoys me. I can't remember it being that way years ago.

Grunting's been on the go since Jimmy Connors's later years. Squealing's newer, and the mix of grunting and squealing - a sort of two-tone siren approach to the sport - is newer still. I blame the Williamseses for its popularity. Give all those players who play quietly a 15-0 start in every game against the gruntsquealers, that'd put a stop to it. The touching hands bit is because all pro tennis players from Jelly Bean King onwards have been gay. The pointless towelling is a kind of preening, reinforcing the gayness. Everything would be better if white balls, wooden rackets and Robinson's Barley Water were brought back, and the smarmy git that is John Inverdale butted out.

[FromTheCapital]

Anyone think Tsonga can beat Djokovic in the semis?
If he plays like he did against Federer in the final 3 sets, he could beat anyone.
Still fancy Djokovic...Murray, final though!

[Sir David Gray]

Good to know you're okay. Where have you been? :greengrin

Have really enjoyed the tennis over the past 10 days or so and must say that I am beginning to follow the game more now than ever before. Maybe it's the fact that we now have someone from Britain that has a realistic chance of winning a Grand Slam. It's a massive improvement compared to Jeremy Bates and Tim Henman.

There's a number of things that do annoy me in the game. Firstly all this grunting, groaning and squealing noises that a large percentage of tennis players make. I personally think that it should be banned. What are your thoughts on it. Also why do players in the doubles matches insist on touching each others hand everytime they win a point? It just looks silly and unnecessary. The excessive use of having to use a towel also annoys me. I can't remember it being that way years ago.

Anyway looking forward to Friday. I think it could belong to Andy.

Glad you enjoyed your few days at Wimbers. :aok:

I think grunting is acceptable every now and again as a lot of exertion goes into some points as they are very long and guys like Nadal, who does his fair share of grunting, are putting a lot of effort into their shots.

However there are a lot of players now, especially amongst the women, who squeal and grunt after every single shot that they play and I think that is totally unnecessary. I was watching a bit of the women's semi finals today and two of the worst culprits, Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova, were playing. I'm glad that one of them got knocked out as it might now make the final bearable to watch and listen to.

There is a theory that this was introduced by the tennis coach Nick Bollettieri as a lot of the players who are worst at grunting were coached by him at his academy in Florida. He has denied this but they may have a point.

The towel thing, I think, was started by Greg Rusedski. He was the first player who really used to pat himself down with the towel after every single point and I think it just began from there. There's nothing wrong with that so long as the players keep within the time limit of 20 seconds between points.

As for the doubles, the touching of hands doesn't bother me so much but the one thing that does get my goat in the doubles is when they whisper something to each other after every point and whilst doing this, they cover their mouth with their hand. Jamie Murray is the one who really springs to mind as I see him doing this all the time and it really annoys me because if you just speak in a low voice, the opponents cannot possibly hear you.

Order of play is out for tomorrow;

1pm start-Novak Djokovic v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Followed by-Rafael Nadal v Andy Murray

I reckon Murray's match should be on between 3.30-4pm.

Come on, Andy! :aok:

[Sir David Gray]

Question for the tennis buffs on here.

Has the dates for Wimbledon being played changed? I remember Wimbledon fortnight being in the school holidays. The schools aren't even off on holiday yet. I'm pretty sure that Wimbledon used to be played towards the end of July. Anyone know?

I only went back as far as the 80s and in that time, the final day of Wimbledon has either been on the first or second Sunday in July. Never any later than that.

If you're older than 50 then you'll need to check the 60s and 70s for yourself! :greengrin

[lapsedhibee]

they whisper something to each other after every point and whilst doing this, they cover their mouth with their hand. Jamie Murray is the one who really springs to mind as I see him doing this all the time and it really annoys me because if you just speak in a low voice, the opponents cannot possibly hear you.

It's to stop opponents lip-reading.

[Sir David Gray]

It's to stop opponents lip-reading.

Why don't they just turn their backs to them then?

[lapsedhibee]

Why don't they just turn their backs to them then?

Physically easier to put your hand to your mouth than rotate your whole body 180 degrees, would be my guess. (Also for both the serving team to be facing away from the net would mean that they wouldn't be facing each other - not good for non-verbal communicating.)

[Sir David Gray]

Physically easier to put your hand to your mouth than rotate your whole body 180 degrees, would be my guess. (Also for both the serving team to be facing away from the net would mean that they wouldn't be facing each other - not good for non-verbal communicating.)

It still annoys me. :greengrin

[hibsbollah]

Looking forward to todays matches. I'll be hoping to get a glimpse of the royal box when Kate and Will arrive.

[lapsedhibee]

Looking forward to todays matches. I'll be hoping to get a glimpse of the royal box when Kate and Will arrive.

Are they bringing their court with them?

[hibsbollah]

Are they bringing their court with them?

Dunno. Ex-Queen guitarist Brian May was up there this week. I was hoping John Inverdale would say 'the royal box is exceptionally hairy this afternoon' but alas he didn't.

[Sir David Gray]

One of the points of the tournament was played about five minutes ago. Amazing dive by Tsonga at the net and then he got up from the ground for the next shot to put it away.

Tsonga is a break up at the moment, serving at 4-3 in the first set.

[Sir David Gray]

Djokovic breaks back to get it back to 5-5 in the first set.

[Sir David Gray]

First set to Djokovic, 7-6.

Massive turnaround by Djokovic.

He breaks Tsonga in the opening game of the second set as well and has just held his own serve to go a set and 2-0 up.

It's all coming from the Serb at the moment.

[Sir David Gray]

Second set looks all over now as Djokovic gets a double break.

Serving at 4-1 up in the second set.

Djokovic two sets up now as he takes the second set 6-2.

Personally don't see a repeat of Wednesday as far as Tsonga is concerned.

[Sir David Gray]

One of the points of the tournament was played about five minutes ago. Amazing dive by Tsonga at the net and then he got up from the ground for the next shot to put it away.

Tsonga is a break up at the moment, serving at 4-3 in the first set.

Scrap that.

The point of the tournament was just played. Absolutely tremendous by both men as they dived around the court. Point was eventually won by Djokovic and he's just broken Tsonga to go 2-1 up in the third set.

Looks all over now for Tsonga.

[Sir David Gray]

Tsonga breaks back in the third set to level it at 4-4.

The match, and Tsonga, needed that as it had the feel of a match that was drifting away into a poor end.

[col02]

Cannot help but like Tsonga who actually has a personality unlike the player he is facing today! Hope the big man keeps up his comeback in the third set!

[Sir David Gray]

Cannot help but like Tsonga who actually has a personality unlike the player he is facing today! Hope the big man keeps up his comeback in the third set!

Not too sure how you can say that to be honest. Djokovic is one of the biggest characters in the men's game right now and has a brilliant sense of humour.

[Sir David Gray]

Djokovic breaks again and will now come out to serve for the match at 6-5.

But it's not over just yet!

Tsonga breaks back again and takes it into a tiebreak.

[Sir David Gray]

Tsonga takes the third set on a tiebreak. Into a 4th set we go!

Tsonga saved two match points during that tiebreak.

[hibsbollah]

Tsonga is tremendous. The crowd loves him.:not worth

[Sodje_18]

Tsonga takes the third set on a tiebreak. Into a 4th set we go!

Tsonga saved two match points during that tiebreak.
That third set was brilliant. At the edge of my seat here. And to think I wasn't intrested in tennis this time last year.

[Sir David Gray]

That third set was brilliant. At the edge of my seat here. And to think I wasn't intrested in tennis this time last year.

You can't beat a good men's Grand Slam tennis match for excitement and drama, IMO.

When men's tennis is played at the highest level, it's one of the most exciting sports there is.

3-0 now for Djokovic in the 4th set, only one break of serve though.

[Sodje_18]

You can't beat a good men's Grand Slam tennis match for excitement and drama, IMO.

When men's tennis is played at the highest level, it's one of the most exciting sports there is.

3-0 now for Djokovic in the 4th set, only one break of serve though.
Very true, would love to go to Wimbledon some time. If only we still got this kind of excitement at ER :agree:
That Tsonga is great to watch, just won't give up.

[Sir David Gray]

Very true, would love to go to Wimbledon some time. If only we still got this kind of excitement at ER :agree:
That Tsonga is great to watch, just won't give up.

I highly recommend it. I've been for the past three years and it's a great experience. For me, it is the biggest and best tennis tournament in the world bar none. I would absolutely love to be at a men's final at Wimbledon.

The only downside is if you don't have Centre Court tickets and you get bad weather. You get a full refund if you see less than an hour's play but with it being an outdoor event in Britain, rain is usually never far away.

[Sir David Gray]

Game, set and match to Djokovic 7-6 6-2 6-7 6-3 in about 3 hours.

He's through to his first ever Wimbledon final and is now guaranteed to become the new world number one on Monday and it will be the first time since February 2004 that someone other than Federer and Nadal has been top of men's tennis.

[iwasthere1972]

I highly recommend it. I've been for the past three years and it's a great experience. For me, it is the biggest and best tennis tournament in the world bar none. I would absolutely love to be at a men's final at Wimbledon.

The only downside is if you don't have Centre Court tickets and you get bad weather. You get a full refund if you see less than an hour's play but with it being an outdoor event in Britain, rain is usually never far away.

So is that what would have happened when they moved the ladies match the other night from Court 1 to Centre Court when they had only played one game? Thought it was a bit unfair that folk with Centre Court tickets got to see the match (a bonus for them) and the folk who had paid to see it were not. It's a strange one. If they got a refund then fair enough.

Murray on soon. Have to go out in a couple of hours so looks like I'll have to Sky+ some of the match and hope that BBC don't swop it from BBC1 to BBC2 at some point while I'm out.

[Sir David Gray]

So is that what would have happened when they moved the ladies match the other night from Court 1 to Centre Court when they had only played one game? Thought it was a bit unfair that folk with Centre Court tickets got to see the match (a bonus for them) and the folk who had paid to see it were not. It's a strange one. If they got a refund then fair enough.

Murray on soon. Have to go out in a couple of hours so looks like I'll have to Sky+ some of the match and hope that BBC don't swop it from BBC1 to BBC2 at some point while I'm out.

Nope, Court One ticket holders wouldn't have been entitled to a refund because they saw the first quarter final which lasted for two hours and one minute. If you see between 1-2 hours of play then you are entitled to a 1/2 refund.

I was actually wondering about what happened that day and I read that what they did was, 500 (I think) ticket holders were able to exchange their tickets for Centre Court ones free of charge because of the circumstances.

Usually there would have been a small fee involved but they allowed them to get in free of charge that night.

[Sir David Gray]

Here comes the main course after the starter.

Best of luck, Andy, we're all behind you! :aok:

:pray:

[iwasthere1972]

C'mon Andy. If he can keep his cool and ignore his mum then he has a wee chance.

[hibsbollah]

James Cordon in with Murray's friends and family.:rolleyes: That guy is about as funny as a cholera outbreak.

[Sir David Gray]

Andy Murray calls for the trainer. :boo hoo:

[iwasthere1972]

Hip Hip Murray. Appears to be alright now. Great news.

Murray serving well.

[cabbageandribs1875]

i expect nadal to gradually grind murray down :agree: having said that....c'mon murray :greengrin

[Sir David Gray]

That was a massive game for Murray to win there. :agree:

Needs to try and go after Nadal's serve now.

[Sir David Gray]

First set to Murray, 7-5. :thumbsup:

[Dunbar Hibee]

He's looking good, Nadal looks rattled. 'Mon Andy son!:aok:

[Sir David Gray]

Murray serving really well so far and holding his serve quite comfortably.

Just hope he keeps this up because the moment that his level drops, Nadal will be ready to take advantage.

[cabbageandribs1875]

last year i thought murrays 1st serve was the main reason he got beat by nadal, have to say his 1st serve has been pretty good this time around :agree: lets hope he keeps this up

[cabbageandribs1875]

bad miss that one :agree:

[Sir David Gray]

bad miss that one :agree:

Really bad miss, especially since it would have given him two break points.

He just has to forget about it now and move on.

[cabbageandribs1875]

and the collapse begins, serves getting crap and wild shots

[Sir David Gray]

I should have kept my mouth shut.

Nadal breaks to go 3-2 up in 2nd set.

[cabbageandribs1875]

can you get online odds for a nadal win now :boo hoo:

[Sodje_18]

Got my head in my hands here, he's making an erse of the simple shots :brickwall

[Sir David Gray]

Nadal breaks at the start of the third set.

It's looking ominous now for Murray. :boo hoo:

That's now seven games in a row for Nadal. Andy just needs to get a game under his belt to break this run.

[cabbageandribs1875]

watchin wummins footy now :greengrin, once nadal got his nose in front that was it....curtains for murray :agree: he doesn't have the mental strength(or consistency) to beat a top player like nadal.

[Sir David Gray]

At least that's the run broken now. Can he now break Nadal's serve again?

[Sylar]

King of the choke artists :agree:

[Sir David Gray]

Nadal's running away with this now. :bitchy:

It's been very one-sided for the past hour or so.

Nadal breaks again at the start of the 4th set.

It's all over I'm afraid.

[Liam89]

King of the choke artists :agree:

Not quite, Nadal has played very very well in these last 2 sets.

[Sir David Gray]

Not quite, Nadal has played very very well in these last 2 sets.

:agree: It's got nothing to do with "choking", IMO, and everything to do with Nadal raising his level and bringing out his best tennis ever since he lost the opening set.

Whether we like it or not, Nadal's best is several levels above Murray's best. The guy is one of the all time greats, has 10 Grand Slam titles to his name and hasn't lost in 19 matches at Wimbledon.

Murray has been taught a tennis masterclass by Nadal for the last hour and a half and it's not anything to be ashamed of.

[CallumLaidlaw]

I know what you guys are saying but Murray has thrown away some silly points

[Wheat Hound]

On a side note, Andrew Castle is a pwick.

[Sylar]

Undoubtedly, Nadal has played some superb tennis, but Murray had a spell where he fired about 6 or 7 shots a mile long, including some howling misses.

If Murray had held his nerve in the second set when he was making some unforgivable misses, the story might be different.

[Sir David Gray]

Massive hold by Nadal there.

He played unbelievably well on the break point.

[Sir David Gray]

Just SEVEN unforced errors by Nadal in the whole match!

That is a truly amazing statistic after playing for nearly 3 hours and, as one of the commentators said, it's virtually unheard of.

There's very little you can do against that and if your opponent's going to play as well as that you just have to say "well done" and move on.

[hibsbollah]

:agree: It's got nothing to do with "choking", IMO, and everything to do with Nadal raising his level and bringing out his best tennis ever since he lost the opening set.

Whether we like it or not, Nadal's best is several levels above Murray's best. The guy is one of the all time greats, has 10 Grand Slam titles to his name and hasn't lost in 19 matches at Wimbledon.

Murray has been taught a tennis masterclass by Nadal for the last hour and a half and it's not anything to be ashamed of.

Im agreeing with you again. Unprecedented.

[Sir David Gray]

Nadal wins 5-7 6-2 6-2 6-4 in about 3 hours.

Good effort by Murray to get to the semis again but his search for a maiden Grand Slam title goes on and Britain's 75 year wait for a men's singles champion at Wimbledon will also continue.

[cabbageandribs1875]

well, me thinks the organisers should have forced nadal to play with one arm(and one leg) tied up behind his back, gie oor andy a wee chanceykins :-(

[Sir David Gray]

Im agreeing with you again. Unprecedented.

I really need to get back to the Holy Ground! :greengrin

[lapsedhibee]

Here comes the main course after the starter.

Best of luck, Andy, we're all behind you! :aok:

:pray:

If there's one thing at Wimbledon worse than the squealing and grunting, the touching hands all the time in the doubles, the towelling after every point, and the mumbling into the hand/ball (instead of writing a wee note to each other about the next serve), it's the kitchencraft analogies. If a player hits the ball long or wide, he/she's hit it long or wide. How does it help to describe this mistake as the player having "overcooked" their shot? :grr:

[Sir David Gray]

Whilst I'm obviously gutted that Murray won't be there on Sunday, I'm looking forward to the final and I think it will be a great match.

There's so many elements to it.

For Nadal, he's looking for a 3rd straight title at Wimbledon (he didn't play in 2009) and he's looking for his 11th Grand Slam victory which will put him in joint 3rd place alongside Bjorn Borg.

For Djokovic, he's looking for his 1st ever title at Wimbledon and, crucially, he's also looking for his first ever victory against Nadal at a Grand Slam.

Even although Djokovic has won their four meetings this year, they've met five times at Grand Slams and Djokovic has only managed to win two sets against Nadal.

Add in the fact that Nadal goes into this match knowing that, regardless of whether he manages to win or not, he will lose his world number one ranking to Djokovic on Monday and there are a number of fascinating factors surrounding this match.

It is unlikely to match the intensity and drama of the 2008 final, I don't envisage any tennis match being able to equal that, but I do think that we could be in for a great afternoon.

[JimBHibees]

:agree: It's got nothing to do with "choking", IMO, and everything to do with Nadal raising his level and bringing out his best tennis ever since he lost the opening set.

Whether we like it or not, Nadal's best is several levels above Murray's best. The guy is one of the all time greats, has 10 Grand Slam titles to his name and hasn't lost in 19 matches at Wimbledon.

Murray has been taught a tennis masterclass by Nadal for the last hour and a half and it's not anything to be ashamed of.

Disagree didnt think Nadal had to be that good. Murray's level dropped markedly in sets 2 and 3. Personally thought he was clearly injured and wasnt getting about the court. Thought he should have got the trainer on at the end of the 3rd set to at least try and break the flow of the game as Nadal would no doubt have done. His unforced error count was absolutely awful. Nadal is Nadal but thought Murray on his game would have taken him tonight, very disappointing.

Think Novak will take Nadal on Sunday.

[Sir David Gray]

Disagree didnt think Nadal had to be that good. Murray's level dropped markedly in sets 2 and 3. Personally thought he was clearly injured and wasnt getting about the court. Thought he should have got the trainer on at the end of the 3rd set to at least try and break the flow of the game as Nadal would no doubt have done. His unforced error count was absolutely awful. Nadal is Nadal but thought Murray on his game would have taken him tonight, very disappointing.

Think Novak will take Nadal on Sunday.

I think you have a point about the trainer. Players' use of the trainer has become very tactical in recent times and it is often used when a player is up against it and they are trying to get their head together and perhaps put their opponent off their stride.

You also have a point in saying that Nadal would have done that if he had been struggling like Murray was at that point in the match.

He did make various errors throughout the match that, on another day, he wouldn't have made. His forehand error in the second set when he was 2-1 up and 15-30 up on Nadal's serve springs to mind and it was such a sitter that it will probably keep him awake tonight.

However, I'll repeat that stat that I posted earlier on. Rafael Nadal only made SEVEN unforced errors during the whole match today and only made three in the last three sets.

That's an unbelievable statistic for a four set match and I would say that it is one of the main reasons for his victory.

I think it could go the distance on Sunday but I just can't see Nadal losing. He's never lost a Grand Slam final to anyone other than Roger Federer and both of those losses came when Federer was at his peak.

Nadal will have a point to prove, bearing in mind that Djokovic will overtake him on Monday and he will want to send out a message that he is still the best.

[Betty Boop]

Whilst I'm obviously gutted that Murray won't be there on Sunday, I'm looking forward to the final and I think it will be a great match.

There's so many elements to it.

For Nadal, he's looking for a 3rd straight title at Wimbledon (he didn't play in 2009) and he's looking for his 11th Grand Slam victory which will put him in joint 3rd place alongside Bjorn Borg.

For Djokovic, he's looking for his 1st ever title at Wimbledon and, crucially, he's also looking for his first ever victory against Nadal at a Grand Slam.

Even although Djokovic has won their four meetings this year, they've met five times at Grand Slams and Djokovic has only managed to win two sets against Nadal.

Add in the fact that Nadal goes into this match knowing that, regardless of whether he manages to win or not, he will lose his world number one ranking to Djokovic on Monday and there are a number of fascinating factors surrounding this match.

It is unlikely to match the intensity and drama of the 2008 final, I don't envisage any tennis match being able to equal that, but I do think that we could be in for a great afternoon.

How Monday ? Djokovic became number one yesterday, did he not ? :confused:

[iwasthere1972]

Kvitova leading Sharapova 5-2 in first set.

Like to see the non grunter, non groaner, non squealer player win. :agree:

[lapsedhibee]

Kvitova leading Sharapova 5-2 in first set.

Like to see the non grunter, non groaner, non squealer player win. :agree::agree:

[iwasthere1972]

Serious question. Henman Hill. What was it called before Timmy started playing at Wimbers?

[lapsedhibee]

Serious question. Henman Hill. What was it called before Timmy started playing at Wimbers?
Roger's Raised-bit, after Roger Taylor, the last British semi-finalist in the gentlemen's singles. Before that it was Mike's Mound, after Mike Sangster, the last British semi-finalist before Taylor.

[iwasthere1972]

Roger's Raised-bit, after Roger Taylor, the last British semi-finalist in the gentlemen's singles. Before that it was Mike's Mound, after Mike Sangster, the last British semi-finalist before Taylor.

Was it Perry's Peak and one time?

[lapsedhibee]

Was it Perry's Peak and one time?

:agree: Also Buster's Bump, but only very briefly as he didn't really reach the same heights as the others.
When it was Perry's Peak they didn't have the big screens - a very well-spoken wumman just relayed the scores verbally.

[Sir David Gray]

How Monday ? Djokovic became number one yesterday, did he not ? :confused:

The rankings are updated every Monday throughout the year, except for the middle Monday during a Grand Slam.

Djokovic is guaranteed to become the world number one player on Monday, regardless of tomorrow's outcome but if you look at the tennis world rankings right now, Rafael Nadal is still listed as the number one.

[iwasthere1972]

Disappointed that Andy Murray is not playing in the final later today but good luck Rafa. I can see him winning this in three straight sets.

[AllyF]

Cracking final so far. Rooting for Novak.

[HibbyAndy]

Disappointed that Andy Murray is not playing in the final later today but good luck Rafa. I can see him winning this in three straight sets.

A cannae :greengrin

Nice one Nolly winning Wimbers :aok:

Well deserved.

[Sir David Gray]

Wasn't the greatest tennis match I have ever watched but well done to Novak Djokovic. He really deserved to win today and apart from his wobble in the third set, he didn't let Nadal have a look in.

That's Djokovic now got three Grand Slam titles and he has now won at two separate Grand Slam tournaments.

He has also now won 48 out of his 49 singles matches in 2011, which is a phenomenal achievement.

The Davis Cup comes up next weekend, Andy Murray has confirmed that he'll play for Britain in Glasgow but it remains to be seen if the other top players will turn out for their respective countries.

With regards to the normal ATP tour, that will probably be it for the next month or so as the top players rest after Wimbledon and prepare for the American hard court season in preparation for the US Open at the end of August.

That is it for another year from SW19 and although it probably won't be as fondly remembered as last year's Championships for the Isner-Mahut marathon or the 2008 competition when the greatest tennis match of all time was played, it did have its moments.

A lot of people will go away from Wimbledon this year asking a lot of questions;

Is Roger Federer, who is fast approaching his 30th birthday, coming near the end as he has failed to get past the quarter finals at Wimbledon for two years running?

Will Andy Murray ever win a Grand Slam as he has now been stopped in the semi finals for the third successive year?

Can Novak Djokovic continue on this brilliant run that he has had over the past seven months and finish the season off with a third Grand Slam victory of 2011?

Can Rafael Nadal regain his world number one ranking and recover after losing his first Grand Slam final to someone other than Federer?

Can someone else come through and break the stranglehold that the top four players have had over the past few years? Can players like Juan Martin del Potro live up to their potential and challenge for the top honours?

There's so much to be excited about at the top of men's tennis at the moment and with players like Nadal and Djokovic in top form, the game could not be in better hands.

[lapsedhibee]

Is Roger Federer, who is fast approaching his 30th birthday, coming near the end as he has failed to get past the quarter finals at Wimbledon for two years running?
Tsonga played well but I didn't think Federer's heart was in it in the QF.


Will Andy Murray ever win a Grand Slam as he has now been stopped in the semi finals for the third successive year?

No. Not quite good enough.


Can Novak Djokovic continue on this brilliant run that he has had over the past seven months and finish the season off with a third Grand Slam victory of 2011?

Yes he can.

Can Rafael Nadal regain his world number one ranking and recover after losing his first Grand Slam final to someone other than Federer?

No. The punishment his body gets from the way he plays will take its toll, starting now that he's no longer number one.

Can someone else come through and break the stranglehold that the top four players have had over the past few years?

No. They will be the top four players for all time.

[Sir David Gray]

Tsonga played well but I didn't think Federer's heart was in it in the QF.

No. Not quite good enough.

Yes he can.

No. The punishment his body gets from the way he plays will take its toll, starting now that he's no longer number one.

No. They will be the top four players for all time.

Well that'll be the end of those questions then! :greengrin

[Shrekko]

Well deserved win and he showed that even Nadal can wobble under pressure.

Djokovic should act as an inspiration to Andy Murray who was ahead of him a year ago. I don't think Andy has peaked yet and to say he isn't good enough to win a Slam is nonsense. He has more ability than many who have won them and you never know how a draw can open up. His best bet though is the hard courts where I'd put him on close to a par with the top 3.

[lapsedhibee]

Well deserved win and he showed that even Nadal can wobble under pressure.

Djokovic should act as an inspiration to Andy Murray who was ahead of him a year ago. I don't think Andy has peaked yet and to say he isn't good enough to win a Slam is nonsense. He has more ability than many who have won them and you never know how a draw can open up. His best bet though is the hard courts where I'd put him on close to a par with the top 3.
Depends how far back you go, but I'd struggle to find "many" who've won in the last ten years.

Wouldn't it worry you as a Murray fan that he was ahead of Djokovic a year ago and is now so far behind? :dunno: Not knocking him btw, AM does great with what he has - just don't think it's quite enough to be confident about him becoming a top top player (as opposed to just a top player). Happy to be proved wrong if he gets better.

[Sir David Gray]

Depends how far back you go, but I'd struggle to find "many" who've won in the last ten years.

Wouldn't it worry you as a Murray fan that he was ahead of Djokovic a year ago and is now so far behind? :dunno: Not knocking him btw, AM does great with what he has - just don't think it's quite enough to be confident about him becoming a top top player (as opposed to just a top player). Happy to be proved wrong if he gets better.

Murray is clearly not in the same league as Nadal or Federer, which is no disgrace as they are two of the all time greats not just of their generation but of ANY generation.

However, I would suggest that he is better than the following players who have won at least one Grand Slam in the past 10 years;

Thomas Johansson
Albert Costa
Juan Carlos Ferrero
Gaston Gaudio
Andy Roddick
Marat Safin

A lot of these guys were fortunate in that they took advantage of a brief lull in men's tennis, which was around the time of when guys like Sampras and Agassi, who had dominated the sport in the 1990s, were coming to the end of their careers but it was just before Federer started to really dominate.

Andy Murray doesn't have that luxury. He broke through to the senior tour, pretty much at the height of Federer's success and he is only a year younger than Nadal.

And now he is seeing a third player in Djokovic have an unbelievable year.

I would suggest that men's tennis is in the strongest position that it has been in for about 30 years, since Borg, McEnroe and Connors were at the top of the rankings.

There is no doubt that Andy Murray has the ability to win a Grand Slam, it's just sometimes I believe his temperament gets in the way. He was unfortunate on Friday that Nadal played a near faultless match against him from the second set onwards. If Nadal had played against Murray how he played today then I believe Murray would have been in the Wimbledon final instead of Nadal.

I think Finchster is correct to say that the US Open represents the best chance for Murray to win a Major. He had a great French Open this year but with Nadal around, it's going to be very difficult for him to ever win that. I think he has a shot at winning Wimbledon but I don't think the hype that surrounds him for the whole fortnight is really helpful.

I think he also has a chance at the Australian Open, he's obviously been to the final there on two occasions, but I think he just loves being in America, he is relaxed in that environment and his game is suited to the hard courts.

[Greentinted]

Great stuff as ever FH, the annual reporting on events at SW19 are taking on a wee life of their own on here.
Always enjoy reading your updates and observations during Wimbermania. :thumbsup:

[hibsbollah]

Agree with the above...Falkirk has been spot on throughout. It also seems to me that we're in a new golden age similar to the whole McEnroe Borg Connors thing in the early 80s. The current top 4 are arguably in the top 5 of the last 15/20 years along with Sampras. Murray is unlucky to be playing in possibly the most competitive era EVER. The standard of the top tennis players at the moment is incredible.

[lapsedhibee]

Finchster and Falkirk:

You both say that the US Open is Murray's best chance of winning a Slam.

Would you also say that he will win the US Open? :dunno:

[Sir David Gray]

Finchster and Falkirk:

You both say that the US Open is Murray's best chance of winning a Slam.

Would you also say that he will win the US Open? :dunno:

I wouldn't say that with any degree of confidence, purely because of what I have already said.

This is a golden era for men's tennis at the minute and whilst Roger Federer may be starting his descent from the very top, there's still Nadal, Djokovic and even del Potro who are all roughly about the same age and who have all got Grand Slam titles under their belt. It will be tough for Murray but he's more than capable.

Murray has the ability to win a Grand Slam, I have no doubts about that whatsoever. You only need to look at his Grand Slam results in recent years to see that (he has made at least the quarter finals in 9 out of the last 13 Grand Slams), but the longer he goes without winning one, psychologically, it will start to get harder for him. He has to believe that he can win against Nadal and Djokovic at the business end of Grand Slams. Unfortunately, he and his coaching team can do all the practice sessions and put in all the preparation that they want but if Murray, in his mind, does not truly believe that he can go out and compete with those guys over five sets and three or four hours then he has no chance.

I always remember listening to John McEnroe talking a few years ago during Wimbledon and he was giving his thoughts on this very subject and what he said was very true. Whilst you do need skill and you do need to practice for hours on end to become a top tennis player, he said that about 85% of what is required to become a great tennis player comes from the mind.

The guy's only just turned 24 years of age so time is still on his side and whilst I would still like to think that he will win at least one, the standards are so high just now in men's tennis that I don't think anyone can be sure of winning a Grand Slam.

Take Wimbledon as an example. Everyone thought that Federer was a good bet for winning it this year, they saw how good he had been at the French Open and they thought he was playing the best tennis in the early rounds of the tournament.

Then he goes out to Tsonga then all of a sudden it's Nadal who's the favourite. No-one really spoke about Djokovic, despite the amazing year he has had so far. A lot of people had commented on how average he had been leading up to the final but he gets there and then absolutely blows the defending champion away.

Maybe that will happen with Murray. I certainly hope so.

[Shrekko]

Depends how far back you go, but I'd struggle to find "many" who've won in the last ten years.

Wouldn't it worry you as a Murray fan that he was ahead of Djokovic a year ago and is now so far behind? :dunno: Not knocking him btw, AM does great with what he has - just don't think it's quite enough to be confident about him becoming a top top player (as opposed to just a top player). Happy to be proved wrong if he gets better.

FH has already listed a lot of inferior players who have won Grand Slams recently. There's one or 2 others and Del Potro has also done it very recently and I'd have him on a par with Murray.

I've said already that Djokovic has shown Murray the level of improvement that is still possible. When Murray is on top of his game- first set v Nadal an example, he's as good as ANYONE. What he has to improve is on the mental side of the game in order to be able to maintain that level for longer periods and on big points in big matches. He's not a bottler, he just allows frustration to get the better of him too often.

I'm not saying he will win a Slam I'm saying he's good enough in terms of pure tennis ability. Will he win the US? I'd say Djokovic is favourite but I fully expect Murray to be extremely competitive if he plays to his ability- a place in the final would not surprise me although he may well be in Djokovic's half of the draw if they're seeded 1 and 4.

If Murray never wins a Slam or even retired tomorrow he'd have nothing to be ashamed of. Some of the expert criticism he gets can be justified but some of it from people who in the main want him to fail is ridiculous. He's a fantastic talent that has been in the top 5 in the world for a good 3/4 years and will probably remain there for many years to come in a golden age of tennis.

[lapsedhibee]

Ok not sure if Safin had 'less ability' than Murray but I haven't seen some of those listed play. So, fair enough, it's quite possible for players outside the top echelon to win major tournaments.

Murray has definitely nothing to be ashamed of if he doesn't win a Slam. I think he is outside the top echelon - think the idea of a current 'big four' is probably a British media thing because he's world number four. There's really a big three and then the rest - John Lloyd at Wimbers was at pains to correct the thinking that only one of the four would win the tournament, pointing out that Soderling, for example, had just as much chance as Murray. Don't think that's Lloydy wanting him to fail, just a bit (welcome) realism creeping in.

Personally don't think it would be his temperament preventing him from winning a Slam or series of Slams, it would be his game. Being primarily a counterpuncher makes it relatively easy for him to dominate games where opponents are off top form, but he doesn't (yet?) have enough attacking weapons to dominate them if they're on top form.

Also not sure if he does have time on his side. Unless Nadal and Djokovic retire soon, he is looking at several more years of physically punishing tennis against these guys. Will his bipartite patella stand up to it? :dunno:

Anyway good luck Andy at the US Open. Is it on council tellybox this year? :dunno:

[Shrekko]

I agree he's not in the top echelon at present but the 'big 3' is a recent thing as well. Murray was comfortably ahead of Djokovic in the rankings about 12 months ago. The point I keep making is that Murray COULD make that jump too as he is of similar pure tennis ability. Don't get me wrong though- I have the same doubts, but yes he does have time as he is still developing his game and not peaked yet. Did ANYONE see Djokovic playing at this level a year ago? He seemed to spend most of his time retiring from games he was losing or having trouble with his contact lenses!

I would take issue with Lloyds comment's if that's what he said though as Murray is clearly 4th best at present. 3 Grand Slams this season- 1 final and 2 semi's, says enough for me.

My personal opinion is that he's gone through too many coaching set-ups and some of them I don't believe are right for him. If anyone could have got the mental side of his game right it was Brad Gilbert and it worries me that he only stuck with him for a year or 2.

...and no, the US Open will be on Sky sadly.

[hibee62]

Murray is clearly not in the same league as Nadal or Federer, which is no disgrace as they are two of the all time greats not just of their generation but of ANY generation.

However, I would suggest that he is better than the following players who have won at least one Grand Slam in the past 10 years;

Thomas Johansson
Albert Costa
Juan Carlos Ferrero
Gaston Gaudio
Andy Roddick
Marat Safin

A lot of these guys were fortunate in that they took advantage of a brief lull in men's tennis, which was around the time of when guys like Sampras and Agassi, who had dominated the sport in the 1990s, were coming to the end of their careers but it was just before Federer started to really dominate.

Andy Murray doesn't have that luxury. He broke through to the senior tour, pretty much at the height of Federer's success and he is only a year younger than Nadal.

And now he is seeing a third player in Djokovic have an unbelievable year.

I would suggest that men's tennis is in the strongest position that it has been in for about 30 years, since Borg, McEnroe and Connors were at the top of the rankings.

There is no doubt that Andy Murray has the ability to win a Grand Slam, it's just sometimes I believe his temperament gets in the way. He was unfortunate on Friday that Nadal played a near faultless match against him from the second set onwards. If Nadal had played against Murray how he played today then I believe Murray would have been in the Wimbledon final instead of Nadal.

I think Finchster is correct to say that the US Open represents the best chance for Murray to win a Major. He had a great French Open this year but with Nadal around, it's going to be very difficult for him to ever win that. I think he has a shot at winning Wimbledon but I don't think the hype that surrounds him for the whole fortnight is really helpful.

I think he also has a chance at the Australian Open, he's obviously been to the final there on two occasions, but I think he just loves being in America, he is relaxed in that environment and his game is suited to the hard courts.

Agree entirely, add in Lleyton hewitt to the list. The fact is that players much much worse than Murray have won them in the gap between McEnroe et al and Sampras then Sampras and Federer. Unfortunately, no such break seems forthcoming since Nadal is the same age as AM so i have serious doubts Murray will get the 1 or 2 he deserves. Perhaps he will be the best player never to win one? I can't think of many others.

[Sir David Gray]

Ok not sure if Safin had 'less ability' than Murray but I haven't seen some of those listed play. So, fair enough, it's quite possible for players outside the top echelon to win major tournaments.

Murray has definitely nothing to be ashamed of if he doesn't win a Slam. I think he is outside the top echelon - think the idea of a current 'big four' is probably a British media thing because he's world number four. There's really a big three and then the rest - John Lloyd at Wimbers was at pains to correct the thinking that only one of the four would win the tournament, pointing out that Soderling, for example, had just as much chance as Murray. Don't think that's Lloydy wanting him to fail, just a bit (welcome) realism creeping in.

Personally don't think it would be his temperament preventing him from winning a Slam or series of Slams, it would be his game. Being primarily a counterpuncher makes it relatively easy for him to dominate games where opponents are off top form, but he doesn't (yet?) have enough attacking weapons to dominate them if they're on top form.

Also not sure if he does have time on his side. Unless Nadal and Djokovic retire soon, he is looking at several more years of physically punishing tennis against these guys. Will his bipartite patella stand up to it? :dunno:

Anyway good luck Andy at the US Open. Is it on council tellybox this year? :dunno:

Nope, Sky's got exclusive rights to the US Open in the UK.

The Australian Open and French Open are primarily on Eurosport but the BBC do show the finals and some matches of the French Open are on the BBC red button as well.

And obviously Wimbledon is exclusively on the BBC.

[Removed]

Nope, Sky's got exclusive rights to the US Open in the UK.

The Australian Open and French Open are primarily on Eurosport but the BBC do show the finals and some matches of the French Open are on the BBC red button as well.

And obviously Wimbledon is exclusively on the BBC.

I think Wimbledon should be on Sky as well :wink:

[Sir David Gray]

Andy Murray will actually equal an unenviable record if he loses in his next Grand Slam final.

Since the Open Era began in 1968, only Ivan Lendl has lost in the first four Grand Slam final appearances that he made. Fortunately for Murray, Lendl did go on to win 8 majors in his career.

He already shares a record with Tony Roche as being the only other player to make three finals or more and not go on to win one in the Open Era (although Roche did win one in the pre-Open Era period).

Stats for other players;

Roger Federer 23 finals (16 wins, 7 losses)
Ivan Lendl 19 finals (8 wins, 11 losses) LOST FIRST FOUR FINALS.
Pete Sampras 18 finals (14 wins, 4 losses)
Bjorn Borg 16 finals (11 wins, 5 losses)
Jimmy Connors 15 finals (8 wins, 7 losses)
Andre Agassi 15 finals (8 wins, 7 losses) LOST FIRST THREE FINALS.
Rafael Nadal 13 finals (10 wins, 3 losses)
John McEnroe 11 finals (7 wins, 4 losses)
Mats Wilander 11 finals (7 wins, 4 losses)
Stefan Edberg 11 finals (6 wins, 5 losses)
Boris Becker 10 finals (6 wins, 4 losses)
Ken Rosewall 8 finals (4 wins, 4 losses)
Guillermo Vilas 8 finals (4 wins, 4 losses) LOST FIRST TWO FINALS.
Jim Courier 7 finals (4 wins, 3 losses)
John Newcombe 7 finals (5 wins, 2 losses) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Rod Laver 6 finals (5 wins, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Arthur Ashe 5 finals (3 wins, 2 losses)
Jan Kodes 5 finals (3 wins, 2 losses)
Novak Djokovic 5 finals (3 wins, 2 losses) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Ilie Nastase 5 finals (2 wins, 3 losses) LOST FIRST TWO FINALS.
Andy Roddick 5 finals (1 win, 4 losses)
Marat Safin 4 finals (2 wins, 2 losses)
Pat Rafter 4 finals (2 wins, 2 losses)
Lleyton Hewitt 4 finals (2 wins, 2 losses)
Michael Chang 4 finals (1 win, 3 losses)
Goran Ivanisevic 4 finals (1 win, 3 losses) LOST FIRST THREE FINALS.
Gustavo Kuerten 3 finals (3 wins, 0 losses)
Sergi Bruguera 3 finals (2 wins, 1 loss)
Yevgeny Kafelnikov 3 finals (2 wins, 1 loss)
Stan Smith 3 finals (2 wins, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Vitas Gerulaitis 3 finals (1 win, 2 losses)
Pat Cash 3 finals (1 win, 2 losses) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Michael Stich 3 finals (1 win, 2 losses)
Juan Carlos Ferrero 3 finals (1 win, 2 losses) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Tony Roche 3 finals (0 wins, 3 losses)
Andy Murray 3 finals (0 wins, 3 losses)
Johan Kriek 2 finals (2 wins, 0 losses)
Roscoe Tanner 2 finals (1 win, 1 loss)
Petr Korda 2 finals (1 win, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Andres Gimeno 2 finals (1 win, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Manuel Orantes 2 finals (1 win, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Carlos Moya 2 finals (1 win, 1 loss) LOST FIRST FINAL.
Cedric Pioline 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Todd Martin 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Steve Denton 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Kevin Curren 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Miroslav Mecir 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Alex Corretja 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Robin Soderling 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Mark Philippoussis 2 finals (0 wins, 2 losses)
Mark Edmondson 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Adriano Panatta 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Brian Teacher 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Yannick Noah 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Andres Gomez 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Thomas Muster 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Richard Krajicek 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Thomas Johansson 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Albert Costa 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Gaston Gaudio 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Juan Martin del Potro 1 final (1 win, 0 losses)
Tom Okker 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Dick Crealy 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Zeljko Franulovic 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Malcolm Anderson 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Patrick Proisy 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Onny Parun 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Nikola Pilic 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Alex Metreveli 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Phil Dent 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Harold Solomon 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Brian Gottfried 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
John Lloyd 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
John Marks 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Victor Pecci 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
John Sadri 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Kim Warwick 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Chris Lewis 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Mikael Pernfors 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Henri Leconte 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Alberto Berasategui 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
MaliVai Washington 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Greg Rusedski 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Marcelo Rios 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Thomas Enqvist 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Andriy Medvedev 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Magnus Norman 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Arnaud Clement 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
David Nalbandian 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Rainer Schuettler 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Martin Verkerk 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Guillermo Coria 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Mariano Puerta 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Marcos Baghdatis 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Fernando Gonzalez 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)
Tomas Berdych 1 final (0 wins, 1 loss)

Yes, I am sad! :greengrin

[Removed]

Yes, I am sad! :greengrin

:agree:

Did you really work that out or just read about it somewhere :greengrin

[Sir David Gray]

:agree:

Did you really work that out or just read about it somewhere :greengrin

I don't know whether it's best to be honest about this answer or not!

I actually did work it all out myself. If you see the time of that post, it was 1.30am. I started writing the post at about 10pm that night and only intended to include the top players in the stats but I got a bit carried away and about three hours later, I had included the whole lot!

I must admit that I am a bit OCD when it comes to sport related stats! :greengrin