The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Andy Murray

  • Andy Murray Faces Rafael Nadal in Wimbledon Semi final

    Andy Murray Faces Rafael Nadal in Wimbledon Semi final

    Andy Murray was back on the practice court at Wimbledon on Friday morning, with the draw having given him a reasonable outcome – if he is fit enough to take advantage of it.

    The world No 1 was paired against a qualifier in round one with a possible meeting against flamboyant German-Jamaican Dustin Brown in round two.

    He is due to face Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals, having been kept on the opposite side of the draw from favourite Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

    But his return to practice suggests there is no question that he will not open the programme at 1pm on Monday as is tradition for the defending champion.

    Murray’s first week does not look too taxing if he can get going, but his fourth round could present a match against the hugely dangerous Australian with a theoretical quarter final against Stan Wawrinka.

    All in all he could certainly have had more difficult draws for his defence.

    Nadal
    Rafael Nadal lurks in Murray’s side of the draw and could be his semi-final opponent at SW19 (Photo: AP)

    Federer will open against the unorthodox Alex Dolgopolov with his quarter of the draw looking relatively benign.

    Djokovic has the talented Martin Klizan as his first opponent and could meet Juan Martin Del Potro in the third round.

    Del Potro has one of the most intriguing first rounds, facing the dangerous Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis, who is on his way back from injury.

    Rafael Nadal could have a difficult third round against the fast rising Russian Karen Khachanov.

    GB No 2 Kyle Edmund has never won a match at Wimbledon but will get a chance this time when he faces a qualifier, whose names have yet to be put in the draw, including world number 855 Alex Ward.

    British wildcard Cameron Norrie will have a baptism of fire against Jo Wilfried Tsonga, while James Ward takes on Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis.

  • Djokovic placed as second seed at Wimbledon

    Djokovic placed as second seed at Wimbledon

    Three-times champion Novak Djokovic has been placed as second seed for next week’s Wimbledon tennis championships in spite of slipping to fourth in the ATP world rankings.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that seven-times champion Roger Federer has also benefited from the seedings released by the All England Club on Wednesday.

    They have defending champion Andy Murray number one in the men’s singles, with Germany’s Angelique Kerber the women’s top seed.

    Wimbledon differs from the other grand slams, in the men’s singles at least.

    Previous form on grass in the previous two years come into play to re-order the top 32 in the world rankings.

    It is a system agreed with by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).

    Spaniard Rafa Nadal, who won a 10th French Open last month, is second in the ATP rankings but will be seeded fourth at Wimbledon after a mediocre record there in recent years.

    In spite of winning the title twice, the 31-year-old has not been past the fourth round since 2011.

    Favorite Federer, fifth on the ATP rankings, is seeded third which means he will avoid one of his biggest rivals for the title until the semi-finals.

    Fellow Swiss Stan Wawrinka, runner-up at the French, drops to fifth seed, from his world ranking of three.

    Other beneficiaries of the system include Luxembourg’s grasscourt expert Gilles Muller who is seeded 16th compared to an ATP ranking of 26.

    Muller won the recent Den Bosch tournament and reached the semi-final at Queen’s Club last week.

    Queen’s Club champion Feliciano Lopez, ranked 25, is seeded 19th.

    The women’s seeds stick strictly with the current WTA rankings.

    Romania’s Simon Halep, who could take over the top spot this week if she wins the Eastbourne title, is seeded two.

  • Wimbledon 2017: Murray Top Seed Ahead of Djokovic, Federer & Nadal

    Wimbledon 2017: Murray Top Seed Ahead of Djokovic, Federer & Nadal

    Britain’s defending champion Andy Murray has been named top seed as the ‘big four’ in men’s tennis head the rankings for Wimbledon.

    Novak Djokovic is second, Roger Federer third and Rafael Nadal fourth seed.

    It is the first time since Wimbledon 2014 that the four players have been named top seeds for a Grand Slam and keeps them apart until the semi-finals.

    German Angelique Kerber is the top women’s seed with Britain’s Johanna Konta sixth.

    The draw will be held on Friday for the tournament, which starts on Monday, 3 July.

    Murray, who won Wimbledon for the second time last year, pulled out of his scheduled warm-up match at the Hurlingham Club on Tuesday with a sore hip but the 30-year-old Scot still plans to play an as-yet-unnamed opponent on Friday.

    With the men’s seedings taking into account recent grass court form, Djokovic and Federer move up two places from their world ranking, with Nadal and fifth seed Stan Wawrinka dropping two.

    The Queen’s Club champion Feliciano Lopez is ranked 25, but will be seeded 19th for Wimbledon.

    Women’s seedings reflect the world rankings, with Simona Halep second behind Kerber, while 26-year-old Konta looks to get further than the second round for the first time.

    Defending champion Serena Williams is absent because she is pregnant.

    Briton Jamie Murray and his partner Bruno Soares are the third seeds for the men’s doubles, which are headed by Henri Kontinen and John Peers.

    Top seeds – Men’s singles

    1 Andy Murray (GB), 2 Novak Djokoic (Ser), 3 Roger Federer (Swi), 4 Rafael Nadal (Spa), 5 Stan Wawrinka (Swi), 6 Milos Raonic (Can), 7 Marin Cilic (Cro), 8 Dominic Thiem (Aut), 9 Kei Nishikori (Jpn), 10 Alexander Zverev (Ger), 11 Tomas Berdych (Cze), 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (Fra), 13 Grigor Dimitrov (Bul), 14 Lucas Pouille (Fra), 15 Gael Monfils (FRA), 16 Gilles Muller (Lux)

    Top seeds – Women’s singles

    1 Angelique Kerber (Ger), 2 Simona Halep (Rom), 3 Karolina Pliskova (Cze), 4 Elina Svitolina (Ukr), 5 Caroline Wozniacki (Den), 6 Johanna Konta (GB), 7 Svetlana Kuznetsova (Rus), 8 Dominika Cibulkova (Svk), 9 Agnieszka Radwanska (Pol), 10 Venus Williams (US), 11 Petra Kvitova (Cze), 12 Kristina Mladenovic (Fra) 13 Jelena Ostapenko (Lat), 14 Garbine Muguruza (Spa), 15 Elena Vesnina (Rus), 16 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Rus)

  • Jose Mourinho ‘Steals’ Andy Murray’s Wimbledon Trophy

    Jose Mourinho ‘Steals’ Andy Murray’s Wimbledon Trophy

    Jose Mourinho and Andy Murray have starred in a brilliant advert where the former ‘steals’ the latter’s Wimbledon trophy.

    In the Jaguar commercial, the tennis world number one can be seen giving up last year’s replica trophy for a special tour in the XF Sportbrake.

    Despite the tour happening in real life, events take a rather bizarre twist in the advert.

    On its journey through schools and tennis clubs, the SW19 Silverware is stolen in an elaborate heist.

    The Manchester United boss brilliantly uses a couple of schoolchildren to help swap out the replica for a cardboard model.

    Jose Mourinho nabs Andy Murray’s 2016 Wimbledon trophy

    When the car returns to Murray, he is left shocked by what he finds.

    Though viewers don’t see it in the video, Jaguar have reliably informed Murray fans that Mourinho returned the replica Wimbledon trophy safe and sound 
    “Wait a minute…”

    Speaking about the tour, Murray said: “Apparently, I’m the first winner in the history of Wimbledon to give up their replica trophy like this.

    “It was hard to part with it but it’s for a great cause.”

  • Wawrinka stops Murray in French Open semi-final

    Wawrinka stops Murray in French Open semi-final

     

    Andy Murray left everything he had on the court in his French Open semi-final but still it was not enough to stop himself being ultimately overwhelmed by Stan Wawrinka.

    The 30 year-old Scot found himself engulfed by a tsunami of winners in the deciding set to go down 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 1-6 in a grueling and utterly engrossing four hours and 34 minutes.

    Murray came within a tiebreak of making his second Paris final, having somehow forged a two sets to one lead when he could have lost all three of those long before the one-sided denouement.

    It was a high class, brutal encounter against the 2015 champion, who hit 87 winners in a match that spanned the whole afternoon.

    While this will be a shattering defeat for Murray, his tournament was a massive improvement on the lead-up to this event, which saw him in near disarray.

    For most of the match he managed to find sufficient depth to push his powerhouse opponent all the way, but the loss of the fourth-set tiebreak turned things against him decisively.

    He will now go to the grass-court season with his game in far better shape than when he arrived in Paris, but he will still view this as a missed chance that he worked so hard for.

    He was left awaiting the winner of the second match between Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem, which would be so delayed it was possible that it would not not finish on Friday night.

    Murray came in seeking to replicate his outstanding performance in this match twelve months ago.

    Both players will have been surprised to see so many empty sears, especially in the corporate areas, possibly due to the decision to ticket the two matches separately for the first time.

    Murray started sharply enough and forced a break point for 2-1 which he was never properly in.

    His first setback came at 3-4 when Wawrinka executed a second break point when Murray left a forehand approach short and invited a cross court winner past his flailing racket.

    But Murray struck straight back with some brilliant scrambling to take it into a tiebreak.

    The Scot got ahead for 5-4 and then had an easy forehand hit away that he hit straight at his out of position opponent.

    But Wawrinka flunked his set point at 6-5 with a backhand in the net and then at 7-6 put a forehand in the net to give away the first set.

    The Swiss made tactical adjustments in the second set, stepping in on Murray’s second serve to break twice and level things up.

  • Andy Murray suffers shock defeat at Monte Carlo Masters

    Andy Murray suffers shock defeat at Monte Carlo Masters

    World number one Andy Murray blew a 4-0 lead in the deciding set as he fell to a shock defeat by Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the Monte Carlo Masters third round.

    Murray went on to lose 2-6 6-2 7-5 in only his second match back after a month out with an elbow injury.

    Two breaks had the Briton in command of the third set, but Spanish 15th seed Ramos-Vinolas hit back with successive breaks to set up a famous victory.

    Marin Cilic awaits Ramos-Vinolas in the last eight after beating Tomas Berdych.

    Murray, 29, was playing his first tournament since being beaten in the second round at Indian Wells in March.

    He beat Gilles Muller in straight sets on Wednesday, but admitted afterwards his elbow injury was still causing him some problems.

    Murray began his second-round match against Muller with three double faults in the first four points of the match, and his service game was again an issue against Ramos-Vinolas.

    The Scot was broken seven times as 29-year-old Ramos-Vinolas claimed a first ever win against a world number one.

    Murray showed trademark fight in fending off three break points at 4-4 in the decider, but could not respond when the Spaniard was in the ascendancy in his next service game.

    Murray briefly threatened to break back with the score at 30-30 as Ramos-Vinolas served for the match, but he dragged a forehand wide and misjudged a drop shot into the net at match point.

    Jamie Murray, meanwhile, made a winning start, joining forces with Bruno Soares to beat Tommy Haas and Treat Huey 6-3, 6-2 in the last 16 of the men’s doubles.

    Analysis

    BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller:

    Even before this match, Murray was talking of adding an extra tournament to his schedule and heading to Budapest next week. He needs more matches and the time to rebuild trust in his serve and elbow: the French Open begins just five weeks on Sunday.

    Murray has at least had four-and-a-half hours of competitive clay court action this week and won’t be pressing the panic button just yet. He reached the semi-finals in Monte Carlo last year, but struggled badly in the early rounds, and still went on to dominate the rest of the year.

  • Murray withdraws from Miami Open with elbow injury

    Murray withdraws from Miami Open with elbow injury

    World men’s tennis number one Andy Murray has pulled out of next week’s Miami Open with a right elbow injury.

    A lacklustre Murray lost to Canadian world number 129 Vasek Pospisil in the second round at Indian Wells last week.

    The 29-year-old, who won the Florida event in 2009 and 2013, however said he was hopeful of being fit for the start of the clay court season.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that he will be replaced in the main draw by American world number 136 Taylor Fritz.

  • Murray strolls into Australian Open second round

    Murray strolls into Australian Open second round

    … Defeats Ukraine’s Marchenko in straight sets

    British Andy Murray dug himself out of a number of holes before defeating Illya Marchenko 7-5 7-6(5) 6-2 to reach the second round of the Australian Open on Monday.

    Top seed Murray conceded a 5-2 lead in a first set in which he landed less than half of his first serves, and was down 4-2 after being broken early in the second at Rod Laver Arena.

    But the Briton rallied, yelling his way through the flat patches before finding his range in the third set as the shadows crept across the centre court.

    Three-times grand slam champion Murray will next play Russian qualifier Andrey Rublev, as he bids for a maiden title at Melbourne Park after five defeats in the final.

  • Andy Murray keen on football

    Andy Murray keen on football

     

    World No.1 tennis star, Andy Murray has hinted a move into football after he retires from tennis.
    Twenty-nine old,Murray told the Times when asked about his post-career plans.
    The newly knighted Sir Murray stated: “Something within British tennis probably, potentially coaching another player.’I would like to do something in football. I watch loads of it. I am into my fantasy sports a lot.
    I would like to try my hand at coaching at some stage but I wouldn’t think immediately after I finish.
    I would like to spend a lot of time at home with family and see my child, or children, growing up.”

  • Andy Murray starts 2017 with a win

    Andy Murray starts 2017 with a win

    Andy Murray celebrated his ascension to number one in the ATP world rankings and his knighting in the New Year’s Honours list by beating Jeremy Chardy in the first round of the Qatar Open.

    The 29-year-old Scot, who has been formally recognised by the Queen for his services to tennis and charity, brushed Chardy aside in a 20-minute first set before triumphing 6-0 7-6 (7/2) in Doha.

    At the end of a defining year in which he won his second Wimbledon title and another Olympic gold medal, Murray beat his fierce Serbian rival Novak Djokovic in London to conquer the ATP World Tour Finals for the first time and secure the year-end number one ranking.