Murray Goes Under the Microscope Again in the UK

By Erik Gudris

Photo Credit: AFP/Patrick Kovarik

(June 14th, 2012) After top seed and the tournament's literal poster boy Andy Murray crashed out of Queen's Club at the hands of Nicolas Mahut, the reviews of Murray's performance came in straight away from the always fickle UK press. And it wasn't kind.

"Worst possible start" said the Telegraph while the Guardian commented, "…he looks distinctly under-done". "A nightmare," summed up The Sun while the Daily Mail ran with the headline "Misery for Murray".

Murray himself tried to look at the positives from the loss and essentially told the nation in his post-match press conference "Don't panic". But with Murray having something of a so-so season despite winning Brisbane and reaching the finals of Miami, the Scot will be hoping for a breakthrough of some kind on the grass. And so will the UK press who have stuck by their man, their only man really, through the ups and downs of his career.

At 25, Murray is used to dealing with the scathing criticism of his country's press when he loses and their glowing praise when he wins even in routine fashion. But with both Wimbledon and the Summer Games taking place during this year's grass court season, it could well end up being a sort of ultimate reckoning for Murray. Even with the addition of Ivan Lendl as his new coach, a partnership that now almost six months later still feels like a work-in-progress, there's a sense that Murray may be losing ground just a bit to the "big three" ahead of him in the rankings.

Murray, in his blog for BBC Tennis, admitted as much after his quarterfinal run in Paris, "I need to find a way to do better there and compete with the top three players, who are some of the greatest players to have ever played the game. That's what I'm competing against and that's the level I need to get to on a consistent basis. The only way I can do that is by working hard, going in the gym and spending a lot of time on the court, but I will leave no stone unturned!"

If competing against the top three isn't hard enough, Murray will also face the additional burden of having the majority of the UK press back at Wimbledon in full force after being absent during last year's World Cup, a fact that Murray admitted helped take some of the pressure off of him during his run to the semifinals. Murray will likely have to spend more time off court dealing with both the bouquets and barbs thrown at him each day in the headlines. With Murray already snapping back at Virginia Wade's comments about him being a "drama queen" during Roland Garros where he was often seen clutching at his back, it may be that Murray won't hesitate to go toe to toe with the press if he doesn't like what they have to say about him during the two weeks at SW19. But is that really the best use of Murray's spare time and mental energy as he tries to navigate what he admits will be "the biggest summer of my career."?

While winning Wimbledon, at least this year, might again be out of Murray's reach, even he knows that his performance there will be scrutinized even more so for what many see is the ultimate prize for him - an Olympic medal. With its best two out three format until the finals looking to be better suited for Murray's chances to do well, especially against the "big three", taking an Olympic medal of any color would certainly not only be a career highlight for him, but it could just satisfy the fickle British press enough for them to say, "He's finally done it. See, we were right all along." But if Murray comes up empty handed, the headlines could be the most scathing yet.

Murray would love nothing more to win Wimbledon or Olympic gold if only to end the constant second guessing and over analysis of his game, and even at times his psyche, that takes place every year at this time. But until that happens, the tradition of British fans and press putting Murray under the proverbial microscope will remain a reliable part of the grass court season as will the serving of strawberries and cream, wearing all white on the court, and the prompt starting of matches precisely at 1PM on the hallowed grounds of the All-England Club.