Question and Answers with Jonny Marray

Jonny Marray has found fame and fortune late in his career.


Jonny broke into the public consciousness in emphatic style, claiming the Wimbledon doubles title as a wildcard with Dane Freddie Nielsen; which can only be described as an amazing achievement.


The most incredible thing about the victory was that both guys literally smiled their way to the title; always playing in the moment and treated success and failure the same with each passing point, especially the key ones. It must have been unnerving for each of their more illustrious opponents, particularly the Brian Brothers in the semifinal and the pair of Lindstedt / Tecau in the final.


In fact, in the final Lindstedt often had the look of “what the hell is going on here? We’re losing to wildcards!!” Which made the spectacle even more incredible and engaging for the Wimbledon crowd plus the millions who watched on prime time television.

Jonny’s win was also the catalyst for what is now described as the greatest summer in the history of British sport. The next day, Andy Murray played in the first Wimbledon final by a British player since 1938. Two weeks later, Bradley Wiggins won the Tour de France, again the first ever British cyclist to achieve that feat. Then there was the famous gold rush at the Olympics which saw Andy Murray become the first Brit to win a gold medal and Britain win 29 gold medals and almost 70 medals in total, finishing an incredible 3rd in the medal table.

To cap it all off, Andy Murray closed out the summer winning the US Open and becoming the first British player to win a major since 1936, a statistic everyone knew! 

Jonny’s success is not just a lesson for sport but also for life. It taught people that success can come at the most unexpected moment and shows that if you keep working hard and persevering in what you believe then good things can happen. And watching Jonny play that serve and volley game with his excellent serve and incredible reflexes and hands at net, then for sure it is success that is well deserved.

Just last week Jonny and partner Freddie Nielsen were up to their tricks again, making it to the semifinals of the ATP World Tour finals at the 02 arena in London. Again they beat more illustrious opponents such as Myrni / Nestor. However, on this occasion they went down to eventual champions Granollers and Lopez in straight sets.

Before the tournament I was able to have an extensive question and answer session with Jonny which proved really interesting to get his insights on his success, British tennis and the general state of doubles tennis:

1. You were part of a great summer of British sport. You got the ball rolling with your incredible win at Wimbledon with Freddie Nielsen which culminated in Tour de France victory, great success at the Olympics. What are your thoughts looking back on this summer of sport?

As you said, on a personal note it was an incredible result for Freddie and I at Wimbledon, playing on centre court in a Final in front of a home crowd including a lot of my friends and family is an experience and feeling I’ll never forget. I was in the US playing tournaments during the Olympics so unfortunately I wasn’t able to experience the atmosphere at home which I heard from so many people, was amazing. Having had our best medal tally ever in the Olympics and with Bradley Wiggins winning a historic Tour De France, followed, of course, by Andy winning the US Open in New York, after coming so close to a Major over the last few years is an incredible achievement. 2012 has to go down as a probably our most successful summer of sport as a nation and just to be part of that is a great honour for me.

2. How long have you been a doubles specialist? At what stage did you decide to concentrate on a doubles career?

Growing up playing at my local club in Sheffield I played in the local doubles league every weekend in the summer so I began competing in doubles early in my tennis life. I’ve played doubles along side singles all the way through my professional career and my serve and volley game, I suppose, is more suited to doubles. In 2007 I was out for almost a year with a shoulder injury and when I started playing again I struggled to get my singles ranking back up to where I wanted to be. I really wanted to be playing at the top level and at the best tournaments in the world, so I decided that doubles was going to be my best chance of achieving that

3. Since your Wimbledon triumph, how would you say your life is changed in any way?

There have been 2 big changes. Firstly it’s given me the chance to play in the biggest tournaments week in week out which means I get to test myself against the best players in the world. It has also given me the added belief that I can compete against the best players and win. Secondly it has given me a financial safety net for the first time in my life. Even though I have done well at the challenger level over the last few years it is very difficult to make any of money playing the smaller tournaments. Having that financial cushion helps to take a little pressure off so I can focus solely on improving my tennis 

4. When you started out your Wimbledon campaign this year, at what stage did you think “we can win this”?

I think the fact that we were a wild card entry in to Wimbledon this year and that going in to every match we were the underdogs really helped us. When you play a tournament like Wimbledon, every match you play is going to be a tough challenge so it was easy to stay focused on the match in front of you. I had lost in the 3^rd round a couple of times previously, so for me personally to win our 3^rdround match in 5 sets was a big moment for me but It wasn’t until we beat the Bryan brothers in the Semi final that I really thought we could win the title. The fact that we had come through 3, 5 set matches and beaten the best team in the world on our way to the final gave me a massive amount of belief.

5. Who would you say are the best doubles team you have played against and why?

It has to be the Bryans. They have massive experience, they have been played together for years and they are brothers so they have a great understanding. They have seen every situation and come through so many tough matches and big moments so their belief that they can find a way to win is huge. The energy they bring to the court is always there so it’s very tough to get on top of them. They have very few weaknesses and have won every title there is to win in Tennis

6. Doubles at the ATP level does not seem to have the profile it deserves. Top players tend not to play doubles as much as 20 years ago other than a few tournaments and Davis cup. What do you think can be done to give doubles a higher profile and more exposure?

I know from being around the ATP tour now that it is something players and officials are trying to address. Of course as a doubles player I want to see as much as possible being done to promote doubles. I know we have great players playing doubles and a few of the singles guys like to play from time to time. I really do believe that if doubles was given a bit more coverage people would start to get to know the top teams and top doubles players, and start to see the qualities they have. It does require a slightly different set of skills to become a top doubles player and especially with the way the singles game is developing, with lots of baseline play, it is a good contrast as the volley is more the dominant skill after the serve and return. Given the chance I think doubles could become a very entertaining part of tennis coverage word wide. After all it is the discipline that most tennis playing club players will be most familiar with.

7. What are your thoughts on the ad in score system in ATP events?

Its something the ATP feel helps bring more excitement to doubles. And of course it creates more big points within a match, which is exciting to watch. It can feel like a bit more of a lottery as a player but whatever the format it the best team on the day generally comes through

8. I have been following British tennis since the 1990s, British tennis seems to be on an upturn after years in the wilderness with your success, Murray winning the Olympics and US Open, plus Heather Watson and Laura Robson’s rise in the womens game. What do you attribute the change to? Is British tennis on a permanent upturn?

Obviously Andy’s success has had a positive effect on other players and his most recent victories have been inspirational and show’s what can be done with hard work and dedication. Our women have been doing really well recently too, especially Heather and Laura. We also have quite a few doubles players that are starting to make an impact at the top of the game. It’s a bit disappointing that doubles doesn’t get great coverage because the British guys have been doing very well over the past 12-18 months. We have 7 in the top 100 and 6 in the top 60 in the world. The US is the only other country with as many doubles player in the top 100. That is pretty successful in my eyes. Hopefully what all this leads to, is an extended period of success for British tennis. It would be great for us to keep doing well to help Andy, Heather and Laura inspire the current and next generation of tennis players.

9. What would you say are your best attributes on the tennis court?

I think my serve and my volley are the strengths in my game, but I also think I’ve improved a lot a mentally on the court. I always try to be positive with myself and my partner to help us to perform to the best of our ability. Also having had set backs and difficult times in my career has made me more resilient. I try not to dwell on things that haven’t gone well and instead focus on what I can do to get better

10. How do you see career developing after you retire form tennis, would like to get involved in coaching for instance?

That’s probably the most difficult question to answer because I am still 100% focused on my playing career, I’ve not really thought too much about it. Hopefully if I stay fit and healthy and I am still enjoying playing, I will have many more years playing tennis. I think I will stay in tennis after playing and I’d want to put something back into the game, but in what capacity, I don’t really know yet

11. It must be an honour for you and Freddie to play in the World Tour finals. What are your thoughts going in? How do you rate your chances of success? 

It’s going to be an amazing event and experience and one which we are determined to enjoy. We are there on merit having won Wimbledon and we will be hoping to produce some of that form at the 02. We are up against the top 7 teams of 2012 so we have no illusions about how tough it’s going to be, but as we showed at Wimbledon we are a match for anyone on our day. Hopefully playing in front of a home crowd of up to 17000 will spur us on to play our best tennis. I can’t wait!

Womens British Tennis on the Rise

British Tennis celebrated a great weekend with Heather Watson winning the first singles title of her career and the first WTA title by a female British player since Sara Gomer won in Aptos in 1988.

 

Watson defeated Chang Kai-Chen of Taipei in 3 hours 11 minutes of tense and intense tennis with both players going for their first title.  Watson took the match on a third set tiebreak after serving for the 2nd set and saving match points in the 3rd.  Not only did Watson win her first singles title, she also reached the doubles final partnering Kimiko Date Krum but lost to the US pair Spears/Kops-Jones.

However, this has not been the only success for Heather Watson this year.  Earlier this summer, Watson teamed up with Marina Erakovic to win her first WTA doubles title in Los Angeles.  Watson also reached the 3rd round of Wimbledon, the first player to do so since Elena Baltacha in 2004

 

Meanwhile, Laura Robson has also had an excellent summer.  Robson did lose a tight 3 set match in the 1st round of Wimbledon to Francesca Schiavone but bounced back well to reach the semifinal of the clay court tournament in Palermo.  In Palermo, Robson beat players of the calibre of Roberta Vinci before losing out to Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová. Robson then went on to achieve a silver medal with Andy Murray in the mixed doubles event at the Olympics.  

 

In the US Open, Robson made an even bigger name for herself by getting to the 4th round of the event.  In the 2nd round of the Open, Robson sent Kim Clijsters packing into a second retirement and beat Na Li in a tough 3rd round encounter.  In the 4th round, Robson had opportunities but defending champion Sam Stosur had too much experience.

Two weeks later, Robson reached her first career final at the Guangzhou Open but lost a tense 3 set match to Hsieh Su-Wei.  Robson had opportunities to win after saving match points in the 2nd, but blew at 3-0 lead in the 3rd set.  

 

This is the injection womens British tennis has been looking for, for years decades even.  To have two players of a similar age challenging each other and pushing each other up the rankings.  Watson was the first to reach British number 1 in July after her first doubles title reaching 71 in the world.  Then Robson’s good run at the US Open and final in Guangzhou propelled her to move ahead as British number 1and 52 in the world.  Now Watson has overtaken Robson again to finish her year ranked 50 in singles and 52 in doubles.

With both players at the start of their careers and determined to do well, I expect a further rise up the rankings over the next couple of years and challenge for bigger titles.  At the highest level, sport is all about confidence – they have trained for years and ability wise there is not much difference between a player ranked 100 and a player in the top 10.  

 

Sport is often in the mind and is about a player’s ability to learn from defeats and wanting to maintain fitness and improve physically, mentally and tactically.  If you think this is far-fetched, look at the rise of Angelique Kerber who jumped from 100 to number 6 in 12 months with a change in approach.  

Heather Watson and Laura Robson bring something different to the table and complement each other well.  They have different physiques; Laura Robson is a tall lefty who has adapted a game similar to Petra Kvitova in terms of shotmaking and movement.  Robson plays a big game and wants to dominate opponents if possible.  

 

Watson has a slighter physique and relies on quickness of feet and retrieves really well but is also trying to adapt a more aggressive game, in the spirit of a Justine Henin; combining defensive qualities with the courage to go for her shots and serve more often. 

 

Despite the excitement of seeing two young British players do so well, we must not carried away as yet and expect a challenge for major titles.  That might yet happen in future but for now the priority must be to keep improving, moving up the rankings and win more titles.  There is no reason to believe Heather Watson and Laura Robson cannot become top 10 players and be in contention for big titles in future.  2013 should prove to be very exciting.

Can Wozniacki learn from Andy Murray?

Andy Murray conquered years of questions and self-doubt to win his first US Open title.  Caroline Wozniacki so far has chosen a different path to Murray and now appears to be regressing in her career.  Is it too late for Wozniacki to win a major title?

After his first three major final losses and other disappointments, Murray accepted change was needed to his game mentally and tactically.  By appointing Ivan Lendl as coach, Murray showed to the world he was prepared to take tough decisions. 

The memo is that Lendl first approached Murray’s representatives towards the end of 2011 with a view to working with Murray.  Not that it matters who approached whom as it was clear changes needed to be made to Murray’s game if he wanted to win a major title.  Since the appointment at the beginning of January, Murray’s game more or less looks the same but the changes are more subtle.  

First of all, Murray has cut down markedly on the temper tantrums on court.  You still see Murray holding his leg and having a “whinge” from time to time but Murray never has a go at Lendl.  Lendl was one of the greatest players of the game and Murray has too much respect to try that on, and would be roundly condemned by the media if he did.  

Murray also plays an instinctively counterpunching game but has the ability to be a proactive player, he has the height and the power to do it, but a combination of slower surfaces and mentality contrived to see Murray play a more defensive game more often than not, especially in the major finals.

What Lendl has brought to the table is how to deal with the big pressure situations and encourage Murray to be more expansive with his forehand.  For years, Murray would hit crosscourt repeatedly, as in a practice drill, Murray was aware that it was not enough at the highest level.  We will never see Murray camp on the backhand side and hit inside out forehands like Lendl but Murray has certainly added more variation to the shot, although he’s yet to master the inside in forehand from the backhand corner of the court.

For sure, Murray didn’t play an exciting brand of tennis against Novak Djokovic in the US open final but the conditions certainly played a factor in that.  Delivering a major after so many attempts may relax him and in his next final we may see the best of Murray.

With this in mind, where does Caroline Wozniacki fit in the picture?  Wozniacki has received all of the criticisms for her game style and mentality as Murray has done over the years.  Like Murray, Wozniacki is blessed with height and athleticism but chooses to play a counterpunching style which limits her chances at grand slam level.  However, not only is it limiting her chances at grand slam level, the grinding style of play is also taking its toll on her physically and mentally.

During Wozniacki’s reign as world number from late 2010 to early 2012, there were lots of calls for her to improve her game.  The areas identified as needing work were her serve, forehand and transition game to the net (volleys).  Wozniacki and her father/coach often refuted those suggestions, saying that everything was fine and being number 1 was proof of that.  But everyone can improve even when the world’s best.  Justine Henin worked hard on improving her forehand to make her a formidable player, Lindsay Davenport worked hard on getting fitter.

Wozniacki gave the impression that she wasn’t prepared to make the necessary changes to improve her game.  However, after a year of successive disappointments at Grand Slam level in 2011, it looked as though constructive criticism was taken on board because Ricardo Sanchez was hired to work with her. However, after a few weeks it became apparent that the arrangement was a sham and Piotr Wozniacki was pulling the strings.  Sanchez was fired not too long afterwards and complained that he was not allowed to do the job he wanted.  

Since that strange appointment, Wozniacki’s form has dipped alarmingly this year.  She has not progressed beyond the 4th rd of any grand slam event and has dropped out of the top 10 for the first time in three seasons.

Wozniacki can learn from Murray’s acceptance that help was needed if he was to transition from underachiever to grand slam champion.  Murray has struggled on the tour this year, but Lendl was brought in to help Murray win a major, not Miami, his experience and advice has proved invaluable.  Wozniacki has shown so far she is not prepared to put her hand in her pocket to hire a top class coach who she can put her trust in.  

As a result Wozniacki’s career now stands at a crossroad.  If she takes the wrong decisions, she could vanish into obscurity.  Or she can swallow her pride and take the courageous step of bringing in someone who could her improve significantly, it’s her call.

Angelique Kerber - new force in Womens Tennis

2012 has proven to be a great year for Angelique Kerber, Angelique is rapidly becoming a household name in the world of tennis, mainly due to her exciting performances and rise up the rankings, Angelique is now an established top 10 player on the WTA tour with a good chance of making the year end WTA championships in Istanbul. 

 

Angelique won her first career title at the indoor event in Paris in February, and backed that up with a title two months later in Denmark defeating Caroline Wozniacki.  However, the win in Paris showed what Angelique is all about, defeating Maria Sharapova in straight sets in the quarterfinal and Marion Bartoli in a three set final thriller in front of an extremely raucous home crowd.  

In reality, Angelique’s good run started well before 2012, twelve months ago at the 2011 edition of the US Open, Angelique came from nowhere to get to the semifinal, defeating players of the calibre of Agnieszka Radwanska and Flavia Pennetta along the way before losing to Sam Stosur in three sets in the semifinal. Going into the 2011 US Open, Angelique was ranked 92 in the world.

However, Angelique would cite her turning point before that, to 2011 Wimbledon where she was ranked 100 in the world and lost in the 1st round to Laura Robson.  At that point, Angelique decided to take a look at herself to see where she was going wrong and what she needed to do to improve physically, mentally and tactically.  Sometimes it takes one significant defeat or bad performance to illicit a change and it is always a measure of a player’s character to turn a crisis into something positive; after all crisis means decision. 

With the confidence that US Open run gave her, she has used it to great effect in 2012, being a contender in almost every tournament she has played.  Not only has Angelique won Paris and Copenhagen, she has reached the semifinals of the Italian Open, quarterfinal of the French Open, final of Eastbourne and semifinal of Wimbledon.  More recently, Angelique reached the final of Cincinnati and the 4th round of the US Open.  In Cincinnati, Angelique defeated Serena Williams and Petra Kvitova in the quarterfinal and semifinal but lost to Li Na in the final after taking the 1st set 6-1.  

Of course, hunger, desire and mental discipline go a long way in competitive sport but to really excel the biggest factor needed is talent, and I feel Angelique has that in her game and now she is able to use that combined with tactical nous from years of experience on the tour.  She is an interesting mix of defence and offence, able to play both in an era where so many players play the same way, which is to hit the ball as hard as possible and make unforced errors like there’s no tomorrow.  

When I went to the Paris indoor tournament in February, I looked forward the most to seeing Angelique play.  I was not to be disappointed and it was a joy to watch a player who can counterpunch so well and yet be willing to hit down the lines to win a point, the courage to hit down the line is always the sign of a good player.  She is probably one of the two best counterpunchers in the top 20 at this moment in time and can get to balls other players can’t reach; often getting them back deep to turn a defensive position into a winning one on the court, especially if her opponent comes to net. 

Her ability to hit down the lines to stretch her opponent is also one of her greatest assets and is not afraid to hit the drop shot from time to time.  Angelique is also capable of absorbing pace and taking the ball early right on the baseline in the fashion of Agnieszka Radwanksa, often getting to her knees to get the ball across the net.

Angelique is a tactically smart player, no doubt due to years of experience on the tour dealing with different situations; she will not go for outright winners too often but wait for the right opportunity whilst keeping the unforced error ratio compact.  Even so, Angelique is striving to improve further by developing her serve to make it a more reliable weapon, and perhaps be willing to come to net more often than she currently does, I feel her volleys are good and she could use that side of her game more often to win quick points.  Improving those two areas will ensure Angelique stays established in the top 10 for years to come.

The beneficiary of Angelique’s rise has been German tennis.  German tennis is now coming on strong with a group of young players of a similar age pushing each other up the rankings and putting Germany on the map as a serious force.  Players such as Sabine Lisicki, Julia Georges and Andrea Petkovic along with Angelique Kerber can give Germany a legitimate shot at winning a grand slam tournament in the future and be serious contenders for the Federation cup in the coming seasons.

I linked up with Angelique on the eve of this year’s US Open tournament in New York:

1. You had your first Olympics experience at Wimbledon in London. What did you think about the Olympics and your experience there? I was so excited to participate to the Olympics, it's such an honor to compete for your country and being surrounded by so many talented athletes. Atmosphere was also very different from what I had experienced in the past. Staying at the village was unique!

2. I saw you win your first title in Paris Indoor in February (I was the English voice in the crowd supporting you). How much confidence did that win give you, especially beating Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinal and Marion Bartoli in the final? Marion and Maria are amazing players. That win gave me more confidence as I was able to beat such talented players. That kind of win gives you the push to believe you can achieve more and more.

3. Your rise up the rankings has been superb. You were ranked 100 one year ago and now you are top 8. What in your opinion has been the change to bring out your best consistently? I believe one of the key things have been my practice, the way I take them and the way I have been doing it this past year. I practiced a lot more and really gave importance to fitness training. Also, winning Paris gave me that confidence that was missing. Now I feel I trust my game. Knowing I can beat top players was necessary to bring me to another level.

4. Which player(s) influenced you the most growing up / who were your favourite players to watch? Without even thinking about it, I'll say Steffi Graf! I had a chance to met her at Wimbledon, I'll never forget those 5 minutes!!!

5. German tennis is doing well right now; you have 4 players that have come through at the same time. What is the spirit like and how far do you think you can push each other up the rankings? And how can that translate to Federation cup success in future? I feel proud and happy that German tennis is doing so well. We are all close to each other, I played doubles with Sabine at the Olympics and we were happy doing so, enjoyed my time. We have a healthy rivalry and in the end we all support each other.

6. Which player would you have liked to play from the past and why? I would again answer Steffi Graf! Why? Because Steffi is Steffi... Number 1 during 377 weeks, 22 times Gd Slam winner... You name it!

7. What do you consider to be your best or favourite surface? I like all of them

8. What do you consider to be your greatest strengths on the tennis court? I would say my backhand, my movement and my fighting spirit.

9. With the Olympics coming to an end, which other sport would have liked to have seen if you had a ticket? I like sport in general, if I had to choose one, I would have loved to watch swimming.

10. What goals have you set for the rest of the year and the upcoming seasons? I obviously want to maintain my ranking and be part of the top 5.

11. What are your favourite things to do outside of tennis? Sport wise I love to swim. I also like to dance, do shopping, hanging out with my friends, watch movies.... Being on a tournament is everything but having a normal life, when I'm home I really like to have this connection that brings me back to reality.

Murray plays the tennis fans want to see

One month has made all of the difference for Andy Murray.  Murray went from despair in his Wimbledon final defeat to Roger Federer, to absolute joy one month later in the Olympic final against the same opponent.  So what made the difference?  There were a few factors that ushered the transformation, mainly change of mentality and approach to the game.

Because it was the change in mentality which lead to the change in approach and tactical awareness, you cannot have one before the other. And during the Olympics I saw a Murray that played consistently aggressive from start to finish in most of his matches particularly in the semifinal and the final.  

In the Olympic final, Roger Federer came into the match on the back of an incredible semifinal against Juan Martin Del Potro which lasted almost 4 hours and 30 minutes and went to 20 – 18 in the 3rd set.  Murray played two mixed doubles matches with Laura Robson on the Saturday, which left him feeling very sharp for the gold medal match.  The final started just how Murray hoped, saving two break points in his opening service game to hold, which clearly gave him confidence.  

Murray had chances on Federer’s serve early on in the match and was able to break in the 6th game of the 1st set.  Murray closed out the set impressively then incredibly went on a run of 10 straight games finding himself at 5 – 0 in the 2nd set.  Murray won the set 6-1 and then claimed the third set 6-4 to claim the best win of his career and his biggest win over Federer yet.  

There is no doubt this should be seen as a turning point for Murray as this win will give him considerable confidence to know he can play with the top guys in a best of  5 set final.  Murray’s decision to employ ex champion Ivan Lendl as his coach in January 2012 is now looking a wise decision.  The change Lendl has bought to Murray’s game over the 7 months has been both mental and tactical.

On a tactical level, Murray’s serve has been both one of his best weapons and a liability as he is capable of serving some of the biggest first serves but very poor 2nd serves; the contrast between the two deliveries has been too great.  In a big match, once Murray missed 1st serves consistently, his 2nd serve delivery has been too attackable, especially if his percentage dropped below 60%.  Federer was able to exploit this weakness during the Wimbledon final, by employing the drive backhand return more than usual and the chip and charge manoeuvre on a regular basis.  By hitting weaker 2nd serves, it sent the message that he was willing to counterpunch which allowed Federer to get on top in the rallies.

During the Olympic final, the tables turned completely because Murray was willing to go for the big shot earlier in the rally, particularly down the lines testing Federer’s movement and running forehand.  The tactic worked because it made Federer think and made him look a half step slow.  Murray also changed his serving pattern during the Olympic final.  I’ve been advocating that Murray needs to find a big serve down the middle (T) on the ad court as he relies too much on the big serve out wide to the backhand on the big points.  

During the Olympic final, Murray found speeds of 120mph (190kph) plus down the middle, serving bigger made a big difference because it made Federer stretch more and gave him more leeway to go wide to the backhand.  The big slider serve down the middle is an underused shot in modern tennis but it is vital if a player wants to win at the very highest level.

Another area where it can be seen Lendl has made a difference is Murray’s shot selection.  Murray was not as afraid to make mistakes in the semifinal and final as he was in the past.  To hit the big shots, you have to be prepared to make mistakes and when Murray missed a big shot, he composed himself quickly, instead of complaining and gesticulating.  This a very good sign going forward for Murray and his fans and  reminds me of Ivan Lendl’s motto when he was a top player in the 1980s and early 1990s “crush or be crushed!”  

The tactic of going for his shots is perfect for hardcourt tennis, and hardcourts are Murray’s favourite surface; this sets him up beautifully for Cincinnati and more importantly the US Open in September.  Murray should now be seen as one of the strong favourites for this event along with Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.  The best part of Murray’s career could be yet to come and a major title could be closer than ever with Murray’s new found confidence and tactical improvements.