Sport | Tennis
Valiant Murray still fails to capture nation's heart
Fans appreciate commitment and desire but his unwillingness to charm rankles and fails to endear him like former British favourite Henman.
- Guardian News & Media Ltd
- Published: 23:04 July 4, 2009
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Dunblane claps for defeated Murray
Dunblane claps for defeated Murray
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Roddick in 3rd Wimbledon final beating Murray
Andy Roddick in 3rd Wimbledon final by beating Murray
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Federer in 7th straight Wimbledon final
Roger Federer reaches 7th straight Wimbledon final
London: Despite success, desire and commitment Andy Murray remains alienated from the British crowd. After the days of mounting expectation, the breathless talk of a possible Wimbledon victory, Andy Murray last night found himself instead occupying a depressingly familiar British role - that of valiant, frustrated loser.
Never mind his reaching, for the first time, a Wimbledon semifinal: the nation had expected more from Murray, and was surprised to be experiencing once again the disappointment of sporting hopes dashed.
But while Murray's commitment and desire have never been in doubt it takes monomaniacal competitiveness, as well as prodigious talent, to become the world No 3. Britain has never quite been able to express unconditional love for the 22-year-old Scot. Perplexingly, despite impressive victories over Stanislas Wawrinka and Juan Carlos Ferrero, this week has not really been very different. If the Henman era was characterised by full-throated and at times jingoistic support, Murray still tends to inspire admiration rather than affection.
It was notable, as fans surged to seize spots next to the All England Club's large outdoor screen, his supporters were dwarfed by a large Swiss flag backing Roger Federer, the winner of the other semifinal. Despite wide expectations of a Murray victory, the slope on which they sat stubbornly remained 'Henman hill'.
One fan, a 16-year-old from St Albans called Rupert, gave a hint as to why. Did he warm to Murray as a person? He paused. "Well, he seems very committed," he said eventually. "He's maybe not the most likeable person, but he's a good player."
Murray's Scottish origins are an indisputable factor in his alienation from some English fans, but it is his manner competitive, abrupt, and unwilling to charm for charm's sake that most rankles. Though he has revealed himself, in his Twitter updates and elsewhere, to have a love of mischief, and his PR skills have developed significantly since he turned professional, Murray will never have the uncomplicated, home counties frankness that won Tim Henman his sizeable middle-England support.
Perhaps the key to Murray's uncomfortable persona is that he is a new kind of British sporting success: neither a working-class boy made good, like David Beckham, nor the gentleman sportsman personified by Seb Coe or Henman. Murray left home at 15 for a Spanish tennis school; he may have more in common with the young eastern Europeans training at tennis schools around the globe, for whom nationality is almost incidental, than with the scores of young Scots now lining up to join the club in Dunblane where he first picked up a racket.
The surest way to capture a nation's affection is by winning, however, and though this was not, in the end, to be Murray's year, few doubt he has the potential to win a Grand Slam in future. Should that happen, Britain will no doubt find it very easy indeed to love Andy Murray.
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