Wimbledon - Reed: Murray will go all the way

Eurosport - Sun, 21 Jun 08:19:00 2009

Eurosport commentator Simon Reed has installed Britain's Andy Murray as his favourite to win Wimbledon.

2009 Andy Murray - 0

I don't want to pile any more pressure on Andy Murray, but looking at the draw I have to make him favourite to win Wimbledon.

He has got a dream draw, and he is now the top seed in his half following Rafael Nadal's withdrawal.

Nadal's decision was almost inevitable, considering what went on at Roland Garros and in his exhibition matches at Hurlingham.

His team were hoping against hope his knee would be alright, but I was taking him out of the equation anyway - even if he had played he would not have been at 100 per cent.

Murray has got a clear run through the first three rounds, no problem. It is only in the last 16 that it starts to get tough, against either Stanislas Warwinka or Marat Safin, who can be formidable if he gets his head right.

After that, the top seeded player he could face in the quarter-finals is Gilles Simon, but I don't think it will be him. More likely is Fernando Gonzalez, who got the better of him at Roland Garros, but I don't think he can live with Andy on grass.

The semi-final is more of a stumbling block. It is likely to be Andy Roddick, who is always a tough customer at Wimbledon. It could also be Juan Martin del Petro, who would be the highest seed in his quarter of the draw by that stage and is a tricky opponent. Again, I don't see Andy losing to either of those. He's too good.

That leaves Roger Federer in the final. Andy lost to him in last year's US Open final, but that was by far Federer's best match of 2008.

Since then, he has not been at that level, even at the French Open which he won. I don't think Federer's the player he was, and I see Andy beating him.

People have said it might be easier for Federer now he has got the monkey off his back, finally winning the French.

The theory is his frame of mind is better, he will play with freedom and return to the Federer of old. I need to see that before I think he's got any chance against Murray.

There is no doubt the pressure will be immense, and match by match it will reach almost unimaginable levels. It would freak most people out, but I don't think it will affect Andy at all.

The danger is that he could put pressure on himself because he's not producing the goods, he doesn't feel right or just isn't playing good tennis.

There is probably going to be a match like that, it could be against anyone, and that is when he's going to be under pressure.

Andy has struggled in the past against players he is expected to beat so that might be one of the pitfalls of a relatively straightforward draw.

I don't think he ever underestimates his opponent, but he does get very frustrated with his own play. He's much better than he was at coping with that, and I think he can pull through especially in a five-set match. There is time for him to lift himself if he gets down.

All in all, the signs for Murray are very optimistic.

Simon Reed / Eurosport

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  1. "The theory is his frame of mind is better, he­ will play with freedom and return to the Federer of­ old. I need to see that before I think he's got any­ chance against Murray."
    STOP IT, you think hes got­ no chance against murray. SO 0%. STOP IT EUROSPORT, YOU­ HAVE TO STOP YOUR INSANITY. He wont be 0%, he will be­ way above 50%

    From Hans G, on Fri 26 Jun 9:07AM

  2. Please guys,is Novak now a thing of the past? Since­ Murray took over the No.3 spot,its been Andy all the­ way forgetting these two guys are on the same­ level-even Djoker is better because he's made two­ GS finals. If Tommy Haas catches Andy or Novak­ again,its finished

    From dimeji_stunt, on Mon 22 Jun 11:44AM

  3. This guy still fails to realize grand slam is a­ different animal. And just like Roger said,Queen's­ isnt Wimbledon. When these two meet,i expect Fed to­ outplay Murray because they are not on the same level­ and moreover,Fed's most losses in final is to Rafa­ who knows how to handle him well. Against Murray who­ will surely be under involuntary pressure,Fed grabs the­ 1st set and its over.Reed,i know you are just hoping­ but it's a matter of time when Murray will get one.­ Guys,i have not heard much of the Djoker,is anyone­ counting him out?

    From dimeji_stunt, on Mon 22 Jun 11:35AM

  4. lets see. federer grasscourt king, with 6 consecutive­ finals and 5 consecutive wimbledon crowns, with boosted­ confidence after winning roland garros and on the other­ hand andy murray a us open final his best grand slam­ record. i am not saying murray is not a threat. he is­ and a big one too but picking anyone except federer for­ the crown is too risky

    From Varnavas P, on Mon 22 Jun 5:33AM

  5. Okies, Why are people getting upset because the writer­ of the article fancies murray to win? Its not like hes­ just ok and might win on the off chance, he does­ actually have a chance ppl..

    Ok so you would favour­ federer, thats a no brainer but murray is as good as­ anyone on a good day, hes been playing well of late and­ he stands more of a chance on the grass courts­ imo

    Anyway i just hope its a good Wimbledon and may­ the best man and woman win

    From D, on Mon 22 Jun 4:13AM

  6. This is Federer's chance to win the title and­ reclaim his number one ranking . Nadal will probably­ struggle to hold on to the number two ranking !!

    From Tim, on Mon 22 Jun 3:43AM

  7. Fed is jumping for JOY
    that Nadal NOT there waiting for­ him ....!

    From ace.firstserve, on Mon 22 Jun 3:00AM

  8. Murray is defintely able to go very deep into the­ torunament, but to believe with confidence that­ he'll win the whole lot is so much wishful thinking­ it's ridiculous. It sounds like a way of venting­ out the frustrating urge/demand for having a British­ winner. Honestly he`s not an ocean better than those­ seeded even 10-15 spots behind him so to think he can­ breeze to the late stages of the tournament is­ arrogant. Murray could easily slip with a bit of bad­ luck in the early rounds and also when he's got a­ bad day he doesn't have the same recovering ability­ to haul in a victor as say Federer and Nadaly. To count­ him in as a potential candiate for the title is natural­ since he's done well on grass lately and is seeded­ number 3, but in my opinion he hasn't proven­ himself in such a way that we with confidence can count­ him to reach the final or even the semis. I bet Tommy­ Haas will knock Murray out though I'm a huge fan of­ Murray and hope him to meet Federer in the final.­ I'm just trying to be realistic.

    From paalerlend, on Sun 21 Jun 11:06PM

  9. Federer Has been in all past 20 grand slam finals but 2­ (made semis). That's 5 years of consistency.
    He has­ not lost a final to ANYONE except Rafael Nadal (mostly­ on Clay). And He barely lost last year while suffering­ from mano all year long in 2008. In 2009 he has mad­ finals in Ausie Open, French Open(winner), and­ counting. His Best Surface is Wimbledon, and I think he­ will be invincible there. Federer is definitely in a­ better shape than last year, and mentally relieved, no­ one can stop him. His record speaks for itself. Nough­ said.

    From Ben, on Sun 21 Jun 10:52PM

  10. Simon Reed there is a long way to go before you can say­ Murray can go all the way.The pressure will be on him­ just like it was with Tim Henman.Tim reached 4­ semi-final i think at wimbledon will Murray do better­ than that we will have to wait and see won't­ we.
    Simon try to remember there are a lot of great­ players in Murrays draw.His first round won't be­ easy as the guy Kendrick took 2 sets off of Rafa so­ could be good match.

    From AJ, on Sun 21 Jun 9:06PM

  11. just give him the trophy now,the rest of the poor ba­ stards dont stand a chance do they Reed

    From universe0016, on Sun 21 Jun 8:26PM

  12. ..............

    From George S, on Sun 21 Jun 8:25PM

  13. lol - if Murray was from Brasil and not GB you'd­ say he might make the semis, with some luck the finale,­ but he'll have no chance against FedEx in­ final.
    But since he is from your mighty Island you­ really believe he will win Wimbledon?
    lol

    From Tut Nichts Z, on Sun 21 Jun 8:02PM
  14. Comment hidden due to its low rating. Show

    Everything is set and fixed for poor Murray to take­ his­ first (and I hope last GS title) in front of the­ home­ crowd,so all of you Brits can be proud...:)

    From Vlada V, on Sun 21 Jun 7:04PM

  15. Murray has no doubt improved allot since last year and­ is even stronger and tactically better than before.He­ won the Queens title very comfortably and things should­ be no differant at Wimbledon until he reaches the later­ stages of the tournament. Roddick may cause some­ problems but not many and Del Potro is better on­ clay.Roger Federer is the only man standing between the­ Scott and his first Grand Slam.There is no point­ talking about him being the first brit to win at­ wimbledon since 1931. That is irrelavent and quite­ frankly embarrassing for an island which has great­ potential and talent in almost every sport.Here is a­ harsh fact. Britains second best player has a ranking­ equivelant to frances sixteenth best player.No offence­ to you brits but I would prefer to see Federer winning.­ He deserves it and Murrays time will surely come.

    From andyhorgan28, on Sun 21 Jun 6:45PM

  16. Simon Reed forget that almost every slam has that one­ person who catches fire does he remeber Soderling,­ didn't he blaze the trail, watch someone do the­ same at wimbledon. Funny he says Gonzo can't live­ iwth Andy on Grass yes his not a great grass court­ player but a player doesn't forget his weapons in a­ bag with the courts faster than clay and his big f.h­ and huge serve it would be interesting and Murray will­ be up for pay back remeber this is Murray home­ tounament the pressure and expectation something he has­ nto had to deal with how will he cope, i wish him well­ and it would be nice if he gets far and or wins but to­ be honest i think Federer is going to win this one­ i'll be surprised if he doesn't but i won't­ be shocked.

    From janice m, on Sun 21 Jun 6:40PM

  17. You are my hero Mr Reed,you always speak the truth,and­ have never ever been wrong,i bet you have several­ university degrees and you drive a Ferrari and you have­ a massive co ck ! I wish i could be like you,you are­ truly a great man.I bow my head to your brilliance and­ i pray to an idol of you that i carved myself using­ only my finger nails.You are the man of the century and­ we will worship you until we die,we are nothing,you are­ everything.I am now going to eat some dog sh it to show­ you my unwavering appreciation of your tennis­ knowledge.I love you.

    From universe0016, on Sun 21 Jun 6:03PM

  18. You've started again REED with your wrong­ predictions, you should be banned from writing articles­ about tennis cos you know nothing about the game, so­ just shut the f*** up and watch.

    From preciousofdlord, on Sun 21 Jun 5:44PM

  19. well, my comments are what and how you make them be-­ obnoxious and cynical - and that's up to you to­ decide how you find them. However, another person could­ find them very pleasant and good. so, as we have­ concluded, personal feelings and judgements aside, we­ move on. Cheers!

    From Pooks, on Sun 21 Jun 5:17PM

  20. its not your comments boow its the obnoxious cynical­ way u structure your comments but u just dont get it­ so u r right best to ignore the whole thing for once we­ are of the same opinion.

    From ralph, on Sun 21 Jun 5:04PM
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