Murray concerned over form ahead of Wimbledon
Andy Murray admits he is struggling to find his best form ahead of Wimbledon but the world number four is still confident of mounting a serious challenge at the All England Club.
Murray’s preparations for his home grand slam suffered a setback on Friday when he was beaten 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 by Mardy Fish in a controversially interrupted third round tie at Queen’s Club.
Since losing the Australian Open final against Roger Federer in January, Murray has seemed to be stuck in something of a rut and his displays at Queen’s did nothing to change that feeling.
He was worryingly subdued in the defeat to Fish and has now failed to get past the quarter-finals of his last eight tournaments.
Yet Murray has never been short of self-confidence and the Scot refuses to contemplate anything less than a run to the final at Wimbledon.
“I haven’t been playing my best lately but my game is there. I just need to make sure I find it in time for Wimbledon,” Murray said.
“That’s where it’s most important for me to play my best tennis and hopefully I’ll do that.
“My expectations are high on myself, and every year I said the same thing. Whether everybody thinks I’m going to win or thinks I’m going to lose, I’m going to try my best to win the tournament.
“I have a chance of doing it if I play very well. It’s going to be difficult, but I’ll put pressure on myself to perform.
“Normally when I put pressure on myself to do well I play my best tennis. I’m hoping I’ll play well there.”
While Murray is convinced he will be ready to go by the time Wimbledon starts in just over a week, he did concede that he could have done with more time on grass after a long clay-court campaign.
“I would have liked to have played a couple more matches, but I’ve gone into Wimbledon in previous years and played well having not played that many matches going in,” Murray said.
“I’m sure come Wimbledon I’ll be playing a lot better than I was here, but I would have liked to have had a couple more matches.”
Murray was understandably aggrieved when he was forced to resume the match on Friday after play was suspended the previous evening due to bad light.
The 23-year-old had been desperate to carry on as the momentum was with him at that point and launched a furious verbal blast at the officials for failing to consult with him before halting play.
His French Open defeat to Tomas Berdych had also been played late in the evening in Paris and he suggested the introduction of a device for officials to measure the quality of the light.
“Everyone was talking about it at the French,” he said. “There should be a light reading so that takes away whether anybody is unhappy (about play being stopped).
“It would just be a rule that you come off if the light isn’t good enough rather than sort of one person making a decision.”
Murray also saved some anger for the doping authorities, who made him spend over two hours trying to give a drugs test sample after a doubles match earlier in the week.
“I came off the court, went to the locker room, went to the bathroom, got changed, had ice on my knee and picked my bag up to leave, then I got told I had to do a drugs test,” Murray said.
“Normally you’re told straightaway. It’s two and a half hours sitting there when you’re trying to prepare for a match the following day. It was just a drag.”
Wimbledon Championships Hospitality
Wed Jun 23, 2010 at 11:00 Wimbledon Center Court London United Kingdom
Wimbledon Championships Hospitality
Thu Jun 24, 2010 at 11:00 Wimbledon Number One Court London United Kingdom
Wimbledon hospitality is available with best price. Specialized in Wimbledon Hospitality. You can buy Wimbledon hospitality packages online on our safe and secure system.
‘Shoaib Malik was ignored for 1st test because of form’
‘Shoaib Malik was ignored for 1st test because of form’
Karachi, Jul 14 (PTI) Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed has dismissed reports that Shoaib Malik was not considered for the first Test against Australia on disciplinary grounds and said the former captain was dropped from the playing eleven because of his poor form.
Read more on Press Trust of India
Venus Williams in peerless form as she reaches final
Venus Williams in peerless form as she reaches final
Venus Williams won the last nine games in a dominant display as she crushed Israeli Shahar Peer 6-3, 6-0 to reach the final of the WTA Madrid Masters on Saturday, her fourth final from six events in 2010.
Read more on AFP via Yahoo! News
Rafael Nadal finds form to win Rome title
Rafael Nadal finds form to win Rome title
RAFAEL Nadal rediscovered his normal form after a rare wobble on clay in the semi-finals to beat fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 7-5, 6-2 in yesterday’s rain-hit final for h
Read more on The Scotsman: Sport
Tennis: Andy Murray back to form but top seed Federer crashes
Tennis: Andy Murray back to form but top seed Federer crashes
ROGER FEDERER was dumped out of the ATP Rome Masters after a stunning turnaround in his second-round meeting with Ernests Gulbis, but Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray both progr
Read more on Edinburgh Evening News
Nadal happy with form heading into Monte Carlo defense
Nadal happy with form heading into Monte Carlo defense
MONTE CARLO – Rafael Nadal believes he is close to hitting the form to end his 11-month title drought, no coincidence given his recent record at the Monte Carlo Masters.
Read more on ABS-CBNNEWS.com
Dodt hopes to carry India form into Burma Open
Dodt hopes to carry India form into Burma Open
Australian Andrew Dodt, who leads the Asian Tour Order of Merit after victory at the Avantha Masters, said Tuesday he hoped to carry his success in India into this week’s Burma Open.
Read more on Bangkok Post – Thailand’s English news