Murray’s now the 23rd best player in Britain!
FloATIng around amid US college players and part-timers, Andy Murray woke up yesterday to find himself as the official British no 23, ranked 839 in the world.
The post-Wimbledon shakedown of the rankings spells out, in stark terms, that the threetime grand Slam champion is effectively starting from scratch when he rejoins the tour after his late withdrawal from SW19.
Murray, with only his second round at Eastbourne to his name now, returned to full training immediately following his wellreceived stint in the commentary box last week that so elevated the BBC’s Championships coverage.
He has continued with a full practice programme and will fly out next week to prepare for the Citi open in Washington, which begins on July 30.
After that Murray plans to play the Masters- level events in Canada and Cincinnati before the US open, entering on the ‘Special Exempts’ available to players after long-term injury.
He is a long way behind Kyle Edmund in the new listings, let alone his contemporary novak Djokovic, who charmed the champions’ dinner in the early hours of yesterday morning by inviting his fellow champion Angelique Kerber for a dance on the presentation stage.
While Djokovic is now back in the world’s top 10, Edmund is up to no 16. The British no 1 pulled out of this week’s ATP event in Umag, Croatia, due to a bout of tonsillitis, and may return at the same Washington event as Murray.
The new rankings are also something of a reality check for Jo Konta, who is down at no 50 after losing most of her points for reaching the semi-final 12 months ago. Konta is now the only gB player in the top 100, with Heather Watson tumbling to 133. Katie Boulter is the new British no 2, moving up to 117.
Djokovic will not play again until next month, buoyed by his coach Marian Vajda committing to stay with him until the end of the season after their successful reunion.
There is no doubt the stars aligned for the Serb at Wimbledon, fired up by his win over Edmund and then having the good fortune of playing Rafael nadal indoors, conditions the Spaniard notoriously dislikes.
The most important aspect of his triumph, according to Mats Wilander, one of the most sage voices in tennis, is the return of Vajda and the unqualified support of his wife Jelena, which has not always been the case these past two years.
‘I cannot imagine that he could have won Wimbledon without the return to his box of all those familiar faces,’ Wilander told L’Equipe.
‘It is thanks to that that he is a bit calmer while re-finding his machine- like style and killer instinct. Marian is the key, Jelena is the key. They are all again reunited behind him.’
Djokovic also benefited from Kevin Anderson’s five-set semifinal marathon. The introduction of fifth-set tiebreaks in 2019 will be high on the agenda when Wimbledon’s committee next meets, according to sources at the All England Club.
An official spokesperson said yesterday: ‘Every year we take time to review each Championships and consider improvements and enhancements for the following year.’