Unfortunately, Andy Murray has managed to win the Queen's Club tournament with a fairly rousing performance against the talented Frenchman, Jo-Wilfrid Tsonga. I say 'unfortunately' because his victory has added even more fuel to the media storm that erupts every year at this time, when the chances of a Briton winning the Wimbledon championship are hotly debated.
For several years, it was Tim Henman who was our 'Great White Hope' and now it is Murray. Henman was never quite good enough even to reach a Grand Slam final, but that didn't stop the media from 'talking-up' his chances, year after year. Murray is almost certainly a better player than Henman ever was and may well be our best ever; he has reached 3 Grand Slam finals but suffered crushing defeats every time. The Britsih media choose to ignore this last point and simply repeat, ad nauseam, that 'This could be his year !'
Murray is playing well, of that there is no doubt; he is a fine player, again no doubt. But is he really good enough to beat Nadal, Djokovic or Federer over 5 sets in a major championship ? If he is, his cause is not helped by the ridiculous jingoistic clap-trap spouted by our press and media, in particular the sycophantic commentary team on the BBC. Listening to the tripe pouring from Andrew Castle, John Lloyd and even Sue Barker, made me want to switch off. All 3 were decent players in their own right, Barker being genuine top class, but as commentators they are definitely 'bottom-drawer'. Disappointingly, Barker used to be one of the more enjoyable presenters but, over the years, she has descended to the same level as the rest of the BBC's sports commentary squad.
Murray could win Wimbledon, if Nadal, Djokovic and Federer suffer an upset. Even then, he would be no more than 1 of 3 or 4 second-line contenders; his chances with the 'Big 3' in place, are remote. Why can't the media accept this and leave any celebrations until AFTER the tournament ?
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