posted Jan 23, 2007

I can see that Murray already has one thing that Henman has always lacked...true grit and determination. When Henman ever shouted "come on" and pumped his fist it always looked fake in some way. One thing I like about Murray is that he never gives cheap points away. I play a bit of tennis and either hit a scorching winner or hit it long. I admire someone who has the patience to build a point!

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posted Jan 23, 2007

well played andy , you done us proud man , that is the best i have seen him play so far , and if he continue's like this he will defo win a slam .

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posted Jan 23, 2007

I agree Armi89. When this country does produce someone with talent the press is queuing up to knock them down. Tim "nice-but-dim" was a case in point> loved him to bits because he would never win anything.

I had a disagreement with one of your fellow country men regarding an England football game (a while ago now). England won 3-0 but I was informed that it was only 2-0 as Scholes had "cheated" on one of the goals. My reaction would be "do it to them before they do it to us". But his attitude was he'd rather lose than win with an unfair advantage. So maybe that's the psyche. To win you have to have a cutting edge and we don't like that in this country.

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posted Jan 23, 2007

That is also a good point Returntosenderos. When he realises there is more money to be made south of the border watch his attitude change.

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posted Jan 23, 2007

Murray was encouraged by Nadal to go to Barcelona to play tennis. That is why he is a better prospect than Henman.

The problem is the LTA and our other sporting bodies. If they give our guys the same quality of training as others, we stand as good a chance as others. The problem is not being good losers but having unrealistic expectations. Henman's best simply wasn't good enough. England's rugby players in 2003 were good enough. England's cricketers in 2005 were good enough. A failure to win consistently clearly has nothing to do with being good losers.

As for Murray. Sometimes you get players who achieve a great deal at a young age like Becker and Nadal but for the most part players take time. Federer played in 17 slams before he won one.

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posted Jan 23, 2007

I watched the game and I don't see what everyone is so excited about. He seemed to have a tantrum and threw away the 2nd set while constantly clutching his side. If he was injured, why didn't he call a trainer? If he wasn't injured, why didn't he concentrate on the game? He just doesn't seem to have the temperament to me. A top sportsman should always be disappointed to loose.

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posted Jan 23, 2007

Tim Henman was a very good tennis player who won a number of tournaments, including a Masters and reached the semi-finals at 3 of the 4 Grand Slam events. He didn’t quite have enough to take that ultimate step and win one. This does not make him a loser or hopeless as some people have tried to suggest.

Andy Murray appears to have the talent to achieve even more than Henman did, but at the moment it is a question of potential. I expect him to do it and I will be the first to congratulate him when he does, but to call him better than Henman right now is not an opinion supported by any facts whatsoever.

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posted Jan 23, 2007

Nadal's style isn't one for purists like Federer's but surely that makes him exciting to watch? Murray is an exciting player too, and as a Scot it's great to see him doing well at grand slams, but there's no need to dismiss Nadal is there? He's got amazing spirit, endurance and athleticism. I watched him adapt his game to Wimbledon last year and get to the final. That makes him a great player in my book.
Nadal and Murray could have the makings of a great rivalry, so let's hope they both stay fit.

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posted Jan 24, 2007

Nadal getting thrashed by Gonzalez shows what can be done, and how over-hyped the 'heroic' loss by Murray was!

I'm British, but do not go along with the 'plucky loser' bandwagon that rolls into town every time one of our players/teams is defeated - normally backed up with an excuse such as, if only he/she/they didn't have that injury/bad ref decision/bad bounce......

Going back to the original point. Murray is a 'good' player at the moment, who may or may not get better over the next few years. Let's not start over-hyping him Tim Henman style.

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posted Jan 26, 2007

im a scot my son is english ,he doesnt support andy murray . but i dont get all spiteful and nasty about it . ive supported henman over the years , no scot will support england at football ,i cant understand why england fans get so annoyed.its just a rivarly like man u and liverpool

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