Murray Beats Federer, but Swiss is Not Impressed

A very quiet day today in junior and college tennis, but in the pros--not so much. Andy Murray beat Roger Federer in Dubai 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-4, never facing a break point against the world's No. 1. Federer had not played a tournament since the Australian Open, while Murray had won in Marseille and lost in the first round in Rotterdam. Because Dubai is a 32 draw with only 8 seeds, Murray, No. 11 in the world, wasn't seeded, meaning he could have turned up against a wild card, a qualifier or Federer.
I wasn't really thinking about posting on this until I read Federer's rather ungracious remarks after the match. (Taken from this story on the BBC website.)

"He's going to have to grind very hard for the next few years if he keeps playing this way.

"He tends to wait a lot for the mistake of the opponent," said Federer.

"He stands way far behind on the court and that means you've got to do a lot of running.

"I gave him the mistakes today but I think overall, over a 15-year career, you want to look to win a point more often than for an opponent to miss.

It struck me that I had heard this same complaint about countless juniors, with observers bemoaning a lack of a "weapon," as it has become conventional wisdom to do. Now I'll be the first to admit that I was doubtful of Murray's future when I saw him win the U.S. Open Juniors in 2004, and I will give myself the excuse that his serve was nowhere near as good as it is now, but I also missed what I think Federer is missing. Murray knows how to play the game; he has speed, touch, variety and knows how to make his opponents play shots they'd rather not.

For his part, Murray said it simply when asked about Federer's comments: "You do different things against different players," said the Scot, who then goes on to talk about how Federer's defense changed his own approach to the match.

And while I'm on World No. 1's, I thought I'd pass along this gem by the always thoughtful Joel Drucker in a column for Tennis One late last year:

I shudder to think of the many American coaches I’ve met who might have encountered a diminutive girl of Justine’s size and ostensibly (unconsciously?) handed her the standard-issue playing style for contemporary juniors – the two-handed backhand, the semi-Western forehand, the near ignorance of net play and minimal attention to the art of court management.

A playing style must arise organically and with collaboration. One recent coach I’ve spoken to, former pro Chris Lewis, tells me when he starts working with a player he looks for many cues – how the player even walks into a room, how he or she goes about talking, what kind of energy the player has, shots he or she prefers, and so on. The rub is that during this lengthy development period a parent or player must put aside the desire for obvious short-term results – that is, the kind that can be generated by playing the standard-issue game. Granted, that style may work too, but again, the lesson from Justine is this simple: Let a style evolve. Reshift the assessment of results away from winning matches.

Tags: junior tennis, Andy Murray, Colette Lewis