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Murray Arrives as the ‘Big 3’ Becomes the ‘Big 4’ |
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Written by David Sammel
Tuesday, 07 October 2008 02:02 |
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 The winter is closing in fast and the indoor Master Series is almost upon us,
promising fans, a feast of tennis and a long-awaited battle for end of year No 1,
which at present favours Rafa, and if he can hold on, Federer will fail in his
quest to equal the formidable record of Pete Sampras who ended No 1 six years on
the trot. Sampras always said this was the record he was most proud of and the
hardest to achieve, and the fact that Roger is two years shy of equalling this
record, after unprecedented dominance, shows just how remarkable the Sampras
achievement is in modern tennis.
The US Open ushered in the fuller, more mature talents of Andy Murray who,
thanks to head trainer Jez Green ably assisted by Matt Little, is emerging as a
genuine threat to the physicality of Nadal. Naturally we will see just how close
he is getting during the 2009 clay court season but certainly on every other
surface Andy is a match for Nadal and better conditioned than almost every other
player. Madrid, Paris and Shanghai will determine not only the No1 spot but also
reveal a lot about the challenge Andy and Djokovic will mount in 2009.
The Australian Open will be significant in Federer’s quest to win two more Slams
and beat the Sampras record of 14, a record that lone looked a formality, now
looking like a tough challenge for Roger to complete. Winning the US Open was
incredibly important for Roger and as revealed before the tournament in the
previous Inside Story, Roger admitted that the doubles Gold medal in the
Olympics gave him the left he needed to enter the Open with renewed confidence
and enthusiasm. I have no idea who will dominate the indoor season because all
of the ‘big 4’ will be refreshed and excited by the challenge. Bring it on!
No sooner than Serena lays claim to the No 1 spot by ably winning the US Open
that she gets injured again. Women’s tennis is ready for her or Venus o lead the
sport in 2009 as I still believe there is a small gap between them and the
chasing bunch. So unless Jankovic, Ivanovic or Kuznetsova truly close the gap
their brief reigns as No 1 player is somewhat undervalued because of the lack of
volume played by the Williams sisters. My instinct says that 2009 will be
another year of flux with Jankovic showing the most positive signs of stepping
up, although yet to win a Slam. Perhaps it will be a new face who emerges or
Sharapova will return refreshed and ready to battle for the top slot. The clay
court seasons leaves the Williams’s and Sharapova exposed so without a full
schedule the rest of the year it is difficult for them to hold on to No 1.
MCTA as a company is undergoing some positive changes and will soon launch a new
website and become the MCTA Group. We are all looking forward to the Talent
Assessment Day in Sutton where the players signed up will be given genuine help
and advice on progressing their tennis careers with some clear objectives and
targets to aim for in their quest to become professional players. If you have
not yet signed up there are a few places still available
with Jez, myself and
the rest of our team available to address any questions about tennis in a
challenging, realistic and fun atmosphere.
For information read the progress of MCTA players visit www.mctacademy.com.
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