Ah well another chance gone!

The title of my entry kind of says it all for the 2011 Australian Open as far as Andy Murray is concerned as a result of his disappointing final after Novak Djokovic ruthlessly beat him in three straights sets, scoring 6-4 6-2 6-3 against the World No. 5 (strangely enough its the same result David Ferrer won against Nadal!). 

As a viewer and a supporter I felt really disappointed for him, but it is high pressure tennis at the highest level and it has to be really tough for him to try and live up to that.  I also think even though he can usually play fairly consistently throughout a tournament, when it comes to the Grand Slam finals he just folds under the pressure of the event.  Without a doubt it would be daunting for any tennis player.  I was really hoping watching Murray play especially in the 1st and 3rd set that he would be able to break back and hold his serve against the formidable Djokovic, but unfortunately for Andy, Novak just outclassed him as a player.  This isn't surprising considering that Djokovic had played so consistantly well against all the other players in the tournament only dropping one set, and going by his performance against Federer defeating him also in straight sets, Djokovic appeared unstoppable, and most probably he would have even beaten Nadal even if he was in good form and in the final.

And while Murray certainly didn't give the best account of himself on court, he was just up against a superior opponent, not only to him but everyone else on the tour, but Andy has at least reached another Grand Slam final, his 3rd already, which is far more than most British players have ever managed in their careers.  It is in itself no mean feat.  But its a shame we didn't get to see the Andy Murray who battled it out like he did in the previous game against David Ferrer, or even his gutsy performance against Nadal last year at the ATP World Tour Finals.  That Andy Murray would have had a chance.  Instead Murray just looked tired, drained, and beaten pretty much from the word go. 

In fact perhaps if Murray played Nadal in the final, just maybe, well maybe not, he would have had a better chance, if he didn't at least beat him, he could have taken a set off him, because Murray has played Nadal alot more and he can go toe to toe with him.  And that's probably another reason why Andy got beat as he hasn't played Djokovic in a major, even though he knows his playing style is similar he hasn't seen face to face how he has developed as a player in the Grand Slams as they have always been on the other side of the draw.  

But as Djokovic said in his post win interview he is a tennis player and he believes in the dream, and that is something Murray clearly didn't show enough of, again although he claimed he would try and go out on the court calm and relaxed, he resorted to his usual negative responses, beating himself up and swearing indiscriminately to himself, which after a while I found to be a bit annoying (and can he just smile once in a while??? Well ok he did once throughout the match!).  It just shows if Murray is going to win he has to re-focus and play with a far more positive attitude, as well as try and improve on his game, specifically his serve and keep up his consistency, on good days he can play great, but its just a shame he can't do that all of the time.  But Murray did at least take his loss on the chin better this year, he didn't have to hold back the tears, he just congratulated Djokovic, his team and the fans, and in post interview he said he felt better about it this year, so hopefully this won't affect his attitude for the rest of the year.  I don't think it will somehow as Murray's personal life is much happier this year since he rejoined with his girlfriend Kim Sears after their split in 2009, and he has plenty of other things outside tennis in his life, so its just a case of working hard and improving his game, keeping his nerve, and maybe just one day he will get there.

But perhaps not this year though on hard court, as it looks like this could very well be Djokovic's year, he's off to a great start having won his 2nd Australian Grand Slam, so Roger and Rafa will seriously need to watch out this year and so will everyone else, including Murray.  And let's not forget Djokovic had a hit a slump in his career a while back, retrained and work really hard with his team and also use to have a negative court attitude, but this is something he has changed around. 

The next grand slam isn't until May at the French Open, but clay isn't Murray's best surface, so I'm guessing he will need to wait until Wimbledon before he can try and seize his next chance, but again it will purely depend on his attitude, nerve and ability.  We can only hope for the best for Andy and that's about all we can do for him, the rest is up to him, and until he stops beating himself up on court it ain't gonna happen. 

Anyway that's the start of the new season for tennis, so we will see how 2011 unravels for the sport, in the meantime I hope Murray has a better year this year, he's off to a good start, so let's hope his loss won't dent the rest of his chances for the year.  Best of luck, cheery! :-)  

Murray vs Djoky showdown!

Since last year I've become a bit of a tennis nut, so I've been religiously following the coverage of 2011 Australian Open since it began on 17 January and tomorrow is the big final and Andy Murray is up for one of the biggest matches of his life against the contender and one time Aussie Open Slam winner Novak Djokovic.  This Grand Slam is especially exciting because for once the number 1 and 2 seeds, Nadal and Federer have been knocked out the tournament and Andy is playing a player that is closer to his level (Murray is No 5 and Djoky No 3), which means he could come closer to his ultimate goal.  Also Murray and Djokovic are both superb hard court players so both have the opportunity to play to their strengths. 

But the big question on every one's lip is of course: can Andy Murray actually win this grand slam?  Well in my opinion he could very well do it and it would be terrific to see him take the title, but it all depends purely on how well he'll play tomorrow.  Andy is also really up against it with the Djokovic, who has played consistantly well throughout this tournament so far and hasn't even dropped a set even when defeating the great Roger Federer.  Andy on the other hand has dropped two sets, but despite a few dips in his performance he has also come through the tournament playing really well.  But again he did struggle against his semi finalist opponent David Ferrer who put on a gutsy performance yesterday, Andy thankfully did turn it around and found his groove as he played on but he kind of lost it again in the 4th set letting Ferrer back in the game again but ultimately though Ferrer lost in the tiebreaks.

I'm certain that on a level of wanting to win the Australian Open grand slam that both Murray and Djokovic want it really badly in equal measure, but the question for Andy is, does he believe in himself enough?  When Murray loses points or sets he tends to beat himself up and get angry at himself, but Djokovic goes out with a more positive attitude (well ok he does get annoyed at times, e.g. he knocked over his chair at Wimbledon last year in the semis in frustration when playing Berdych in the semis).  Djokovic said after his semi final match in interview that he does belief in himself and its that sort of belief Andy Murray really needs to show tomorrow in order to win this final.  He has the guts to win and he has the ability, and even if he struggles against Djokovic a bit tomorrow, he might just be able to turn it around, but it all boils down to how well he'll play. 

So Andy this easier said than done and am not the best person to give this advice but here goes: keep the unforced errors down, hold your serve, keep strong and (I can't believe I'm going to say this) don't stop believin!  (Cringe!!!!!!).  And don't let Djokovic turns this into a demolition derby for you.  Then we might just see that great miracle; the first British player to win a tennis singles grand slam final in 75 years.

Its gonna be a hell of a match, and we are all behind you (well thousands of miles actually! ;-), so the very best of luck tomorrow, sir!            

The new year

Well its 2011 and its another year, so far of course its too early to tell what is in stock.  But already still studying away at my IT apprenticeship, so working hard on that, good also to get a little bit of money for a change.  On the acting front not much on the go, but hopefully I will be auditioning for the Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy at the Ramshorn (to be put on later in March this year) later this month (here's hoping!) which would be great as I've been a big fan of the Hitch Hiker's for many years (I even still have the original radio script book that came out 25 years ago! Showing my age I think!). 

So apart from that, that's all the news fer now, will see how the rest of 2011 goes in future posts.  Ta the now.