[Connor]

Will someone update the Murray Schedule  on Murraysworld please?

Hadn't realised he was due to play Shanghai!

Cannot understand why many of you think there are few points to defend (a semi and a final out of three Asian tournaments is some reasonable points). Sad bit was how he lost those matches - to Novak when well ahead and to Raonic a total failure? Like to see him do well in Davis Cup and then Thailand to motivate for O2.

Surely by now his race to London points almost qualify him for that? He is nearly 3000 points above 8th place!

All I want now is for Gasquet and Stan W to continue with good results for the next month and Delpo and Berdy to earn reasonable points then someone else may not get to London! A failure by that man in Shanghai and his schedule may need to be re-written. Retirement best option?

Murray has already made the qualification cut

[Katie]

I couldn't care if Andy took the rest of the year off.

If he's burnt out and that's what he needs to come back stronger, then I'm fine with that.

I struggle with the rankings stuff, so hypothetically speaking, if he did that and came back for the AO, would that help him in the points for next year?

Over to the experts, thanks...

He'd lose 1,270 points if he didn't play again for the rest of the year, and then he starts the year with 250 points to defend in Brisbane and 1,200 points in Australia. I think a long break might do him more harm than good really - it seemed to work against Fed this year when he had that 7 week period off.

Why don't people get it? Its not complicated, its simple probability. With Andy at number 2 he has a 50% probability of getting the spare wheel in the semi-finals. At number 3 he has zero chance of getting the spare wheel.

It's obviously an advantage to avoid playing both Nadal and Djokovic back-to-back, but draws often open up anyway. It happened on route to all but one of Andy's slam finals, where he played the following players in the semi-finals: AO2010 (Cilic - though Andy did beat Nadal in the QF), AO2011 (Ferrer), W2012 (Tsonga), USO2012 (Berdych), W2013 (Janowicz).

[teejay1]

Will someone update the Murray Schedule  on Murraysworld please?

Hadn't realised he was due to play Shanghai!

Cannot understand why many of you think there are few points to defend (a semi and a final out of three Asian tournaments is some reasonable points). Sad bit was how he lost those matches - to Novak when well ahead and to Raonic a total failure? Like to see him do well in Davis Cup and then Thailand to motivate for O2.

Surely by now his race to London points almost qualify him for that? He is nearly 3000 points above 8th place!

Andy has to play Shanghai unless he's injured or ill and therefore out. It's a Masters.

Last year in Asia he was just going through a tiny dip after winning his first slam. Like the USO this year, I get it.

In Japan, in the semi against Raonic Andy did have match points, but on Raonic's serve, so I don't regard it as a total failure.  Raonic's serve isn't the easiest to break anyway, and at match points down he was bound to be extra awkward.

In Shanghai Andy had match points again, but Djokovic pulled off a couple of amazing shots and turned things around.

In both cases Andy was feeling the effect of winning his first slam and was also quite clearly unwell. I think the mental tank was just empty as well, but the point was that he regrouped and got to the semi's at the O2. I still think he'd have won that semi if the crowd hadn't got on his back.

Andy's definitely in the WTF. I'm looking forward to it already.

[marathonarthur]

Andy has to play Shanghai unless he's injured or ill and therefore out. It's a Masters.

Last year in Asia he was just going through a tiny dip after winning his first slam. Like the USO this year, I get it.

In Japan, in the semi against Raonic Andy did have match points, but on Raonic's serve, so I don't regard it as a total failure.  Raonic's serve isn't the easiest to break anyway, and at match points down he was bound to be extra awkward.

In Shanghai Andy had match points again, but Djokovic pulled off a couple of amazing shots and turned things around.

In both cases Andy was feeling the effect of winning his first slam and was also quite clearly unwell. I think the mental tank was just empty as well, but the point was that he regrouped and got to the semi's at the O2. I still think he'd have won that semi if the crowd hadn't got on his back.

Andy's definitely in the WTF. I'm looking forward to it already.

I feel that both those two games in Asia were ones that got away! I also remember the disgraceful crowd abuse at the O2. It shook me that cosmopolitan London could behave so badly to one of GB's few top class sportsmen (just because he was a Scot?).

I too, am looking forward to O2. Novak doesn't want me there when I go. He has lost two of three when I am watching. Perhaps I might get a game between Stan and Andy and have a racket breaking session? A pity they did that.

[rob92]

Skipping the Asian swing is dumbest idea in the world. The pressure of defending a Final in Australia. Andy needs a points cushion. I can't have him facing Nadal/Djokovic in a QF. 

[TheMadHatter]

They are exactly that

Not exactly. 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8 are put into separate groups but it's randomly drawn.

[The Gnome]

Not exactly. 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8 are put into separate groups but it's randomly drawn.

Ah ok