when i seen the headline 'this can be murray's time' i thought it was a quote from some legend or something, misleading - suck my ass
Maybe our intellectually-challenged friend has heard of a bloke called
John McEnroe who has been outspoken once again on Andy's potential to do some damage at SW19?
Quoting from an in depth interview in
The Times:
"I was 22 [as Murray is now] when I won Wimbledon,” he says. “I think the time is right here [for him]. It is not as if it happened easily for me. It took a while. But I'll tell you one thing - it will be that much more satisfying when you do win it. Look at the guys ahead of him. Federer, without a doubt one of the greatest players who ever lived. Nadal, who all of a sudden is a phenomenal player, maybe one of the greatest who ever lived. So Murray can't feel real bad.
“But something is gonna give. Even though he won the French, there has been a sense that something is giving a bit with Roger, enough that Murray thinks, ‘Hey, maybe I can beat this guy at Wimbledon.' The way Roger plays there, he seemed pretty unbeatable for a while. Now there is that little chink. I think Murray likes his chances against Nadal on grass a lot more this year. If nothing else, these two have made him a better player.”
McEnroe reflects on Murray's form at Wimbledon last year, when he raised himself to such a pitch in his five-set, back-from-the-dead victory over Richard Gasquet, of France, that he ran dry when Nadal challenged him in the quarter-finals.
“That was the ultimate test and it showed him what he needed to do to be able to challenge these guys and he has done it,” McEnroe said. “His legs are thicker than I have seen them and he's intimidating people with his fitness, which was an issue early in his career. His movement is amazing when you think how tall he is. The cat-and-mouse style he plays is something I like to see.
“It's a thinking man's game and he has got into Roger's head. A couple of years ago, I would have said that [Novak] Djokovic was stronger than Andy but that has shifted. You can see he has more pop on his serve and he continues to befuddle guys mentally.
“There are guys who have stepped it up when it comes to Roger and people aren't as afraid. When you lose that aura that little bit - as I know - people hang in there that little bit harder and longer in the early matches, they make you work harder, the guys close to you sense their moment.
“I can't give Murray any advice. You have just got to live it. After my loss to [Björn] Borg in 1980, I was able to win three of the next four years so I learnt. I was hungrier. The lesson I learned from ‘80 was I thought the guy was going to go away in the fifth set. I just didn't think he would want it that bad after I won that tie-breaker. And he dug in like a great champion and he seemed to want it more than I did. I was a bit amazed by that. You have got to be 110 per cent the whole of the time.”
Sorry for the long post, but it's good to see a thoughtful assessment of Andy's chances from a man who should know... A lot of people have accused Macca of brown-nosing the Brits by bigging up Andy in the past, but it makes little sense as he is just as effusive on NBC. I think he recognises old school style and talent when he sees it
