Having now reached the pinnacle of the men’s singles and achieved perhaps the biggest goal a player could aspire to, Sir Andrew Barron Murray, 2016 year-end World No. 1, will now look to restructure his goals having started the 2017 season off in convincing fashion.
But having gained that title by no means translates into Murray taking it easy, and it is doubtful, given the Scot’s hard-working, aggressive nature, that he will take a prolonged period of rest.
Murray has already declared himself in the 2017 season; despite having lost out at the finals of the ATP Doha Championships, he put up a strong fight against longtime opponent Djokovic. Despite the Serb holding three championship points in the second set, a valiant fight back from Murray forced a third set.
The Scot more than put his fighting spirit on display, stretching for near-impossible shots that players better than him, even, may have ignored.
Here are 5 new goals Murray could set in the coming season:
Winning the Australian Open
Last year, the Scot won a second title at Wimbledon, his third Grand Slam overall. He has trophies at Wimbledon and the US Open – no mean feat in itself, but Swiss Stan Wawrinka, who shares Murray’s overall Grand Slam tally, has titles at the Australian Open, the French Open and, as of last year, the US Open.
Murray has made the finals of the Australian Open on five separate occasions, for the first time in 2010. Losing to Roger Federer in his first Australian Open final in a long-drawn out third-set tiebreak, he lost a further four times to arch-nemesis Novak Djokovic.
This year, and perhaps in most of the latter half of the 2016 season, Murray’s defense has been nothing short of exceptional. The Scot has been fending off near-impossible shots, a feat he repeated multiple times in his Qatar Open final against Novak Djokovic this week.
His forehands down the line have become more powerful, more well-placed, his defensive baseline work honed significantly. Given that he did not have much downtime, Murray’s fitness – a facet that has stood him in the utmost stead throughout his career so far, is a marvel. The Scot is perhaps one of the few players to not have struggled with any significant injury that has derailed his career, even for a short period.
Now, given his form and the number of barriers Murray has systematically broken the last year – even ending the year with a first-time ATP World Tour Finals title, there should be nothing in the way of Murray breaking yet another barrier.
Holding onto World No. 1
Despite his struggles in the latter half of the 2016 season, Novak Djokovic had an immensely successful start to the year, winning the first two Grand Slams in addition to a slew of other titles. That means, however, that he is defending a significant number of points this season – giving Murray, who made both Slam finals but did not win, the advantage here. Should Murray better his performances at the Australian and French Open – in addition to picking up a number of Djokovic’s 2016 titles, he should, if he is able to keep his consistency, retain the World No. 1 ranking for some time.
Djokovic has, of course, declared himself at the Qatar Open – but not before a significant fight back from Murray, who as World No. 1 still has the upper hand.
The Serb, as the winner, is defending 2,000 points at the Australian Open. Murray, as runner-up, is defending 1,200.
As of the end of the ATP Qatar Open, Murray is on top with 12,560 points, and Djokovic is second with 11,780; that gives Murray a 780 point lead. Although this is an unlikely scenario, even if the pair both see first-round exits at the Australian Open, it is Murray’s lead that will extend.
Should Djokovic successfully defend his title at the Australian Open, he will need Murray to exit by the quarter-finals if he wants to wrest the No. 1 ranking back from the Scot. It’s a long ask and an unlikely outcome, giving the consistent Murray a comfortable time until the clay-court season to improve on the flaws that are still part of his game.
Improve his record against Djokovic
They are arch-rivals on the court and perhaps Murray’s biggest opponent has been Novak Djokovic. The Serb, until the end of 2016, led that record 25-11 – a record he extended to 26-11 following a title win over Murray at the finals of the ATP Qatar Open in Doha last week.
Djokovic has beaten Murray, as he has many of his opponents, on every single surface – indoor, outdoor, clay, hard, grass. Murray’s defense has, perhaps, even been honed to an extent by Djokovic’s explosive offensive baseline attacks. The two have no doubt fed off each other in improving their skills, but much like another iconic head-to-head record – that of former No. 1s Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, this rivalry too is slanted firmly in one direction – that of Novak Djokovic.
The 2016 season saw Murray part ways with French ace Amelie Mauresmo and return to coaching with Czech former No. 1 Ivan Lendl, a move that has paid off in spades for Murray.
Murray is high on morale this year and self-belief, and this time, he will be bolstered by the fact that he should be able to hold that ranking well into the season. That aside, Murray has also been newly knighted – making him the only knighted tennis player in action and one of the youngest people to be knighted.
Having also set a record for the country, Murray has now found increased support within and outside Great Britain, where support had in the past been polarized. In addition to obvious factors such as his immense fitness,
A French Open Title
Last year, Andy Murray made his first ever French Open final, and even took the first set convincingly off Novak Djokovic. It was only courtesy a resilient fight back from the Serb, perhaps in the extreme want of breaking his Roland Gaross jinx, that Murray was denied his title. That said, he did beat the Serb – on clay – during the season, and is no slouch on the surface.
2016 saw Murray take the Rome Masters title on clay, beating Novak Djokovic in thorough fashion – 6-3, 6-3 in the finals.
Should he be able to overcome his own Roland Garros barrier, Murray will not only come closer to the whole array of slams, but surmount one of his own biggest battles.
Considering he has only ever made one French Open final, Murray’s lack of titles at the venue cannot be described as a curse. But every time he has met Novak Djokovic on that surface, fans have seen strongly-fought battles. With both players in form this year and both with something to prove, it’s something we will likely see again in 2017.
As World No. 1, Murray may just be able to overcome the mental block that saw him start off looking the aggressor last year and losing out – and we could see him inch closer to the elusive career Grand Slam.
A Career Grand Slam
Murray has three Grand Slam titles, but two of those are at the same venue – Wimbledon. At this point, it is Swiss Stan Wawrinka who is closer to a career Grand Slam than Murray – and incidentally, it is only the Wimbledon trophy that is missing from the Swiss’ extensive cabinet.
While Murray has had success in the past year on grass, clay and hard courts, winning Grand Slams on those surfaces has evaded him. It is a funny quandary, especially given his opponents have been largely similar.
It is likely, then, that the scale of the tournament has gotten to Murray, who has arguably never been at the level of Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer when it comes down to psychological battles and mental power. The easily aggravated Murray, who has of late managed to tone down his temper, has nevertheless struggled to hold his aggravation at crucial moments – and this may be key in some big losses.
A win at the Australian Open, which Murray could achieve in his current form, would get him closer to the elusive Career Slam, which even 13-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic only completed in 2016 with his maiden French Open title.
It is by no means an easy feat – only eight players in the history of the sport have ever achieved it, among them Murray’s peers, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and the latest entrant to that club, Novak Djokovic. It will mean Murray needs to win two Grand Slam titles this year – but if his past season has been any precedent, it is a feat he can achieve.
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