Tennis Chatter

In tennis a player faces two battles: inside and out. He battles himself, his nerves, his mind. It does not help that there in the stadium where he enters to wide applause, awaits another player seemingly ready to pound on him…to wide applause. He battles his mind, his nerves, his body. Yes, that temple of the spirit which like any structure could break down under the flaming Melbourne sun.

World no. 15 Andy Murray knows what “unfit�? means with his eyes closed — and this is not talking about his tennis abilities. In the 2005 U.S. Open, he practically almost scattered his insides around the court during the fifth set against Andrei Pavel although at the end he courageously pocketed the match. The heart was much willing but the weak tummy and cramping legs were not especially when he was on the verge of reaching a fifth set. Short of panting, “I’ll take the fifth…on hold,�? Murray was a promising player who desperately needed a good trainer to pump his muscles. He literally wilted in five-setters despite his obvious gift.

Compromise, like equanimity, is not the Scot’s (please, he is not English!) strongest virtue. Soon after coach Mark Petchey’s term ended, he made known his own standards for his next coach. He better be someone he himself will respect. After much speculation and scrutiny, he found that in Brad Gilbert with oodles of financial help from the Lawn Tennis Association, of course. Since July last year, Gilbert’s influence over Andy Murray has been slowly manifesting from his controlled on-court demeanor (slowly, this is happening slowly, folks) to his current speed and stamina in the Australian Open. To address the fitness problem, Murray trained with Gilbert’s neighbor Olympic ace U.S. sprinter Michael Johnson last winter. It is safe to assume that Murray had a very warm winter season blazing the tracks, indeed.

In his first Grand Slam event in this long season, he showed no mercy to Spain’s Alberto Martin 6-0 6-0 6-1 (the 1 game was for Martin’s effort). He clawed his way to the last 32 by being plainly belligerent against his opponent and the frying heat, dispatching Spain’s Fernando Verdasco 7-6 7-5 6-4. He will next face Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela, his slayer in the first round last year at Melbourne Park.

Murray could possibly break into the world’s top ten if he reaches the semi-finals in the AO. If he could carry his composure for the long ride, use his guns smartly, this Grand Slam event, the highest that he is seeded in his young career, will somehow write a big story all over his chiseled rubicund face.