His strength is refusing to settle for second best
A remarkable figure in an era that would crush a lesser man
Complete the sequence: 540, 411, 64, 17, 11, 4,4, 4, 4, 3, 4, 6, 2. one? Andy murray will hope so. these are his year-end rankings, from 2003 to the present day. Almost there, then.
murray, right now, is world No 1. A strong performance in the Atp tour Finals in london next week and he will remain in place when the 2016 season is over. either way, there it is. A numerical chart of determination, cussedness, self-sacrifice, stamina and quite extraordinary ability.
look at the giant improvements, year on year — 411 to 64 to 17 — the times when it must have seemed impossible to make ground, the frustration at being so close on occasions yet, given the standards at the head of the field, so very far away.
the first number is appropriate, 540, because that feels like the number of occasions sports writers are asked to find ways of putting into context murray’s achievements and his place in Britain’s athletic pantheon. Yet there are always new words to write because there are always new worlds to conquer and murray is the master of invention.
He keeps finding fresh ways to be great. the first Grand Slam win by a male British tennis player since 1936. the first British Wimbledon men’s winner in 77 years. the first Briton to win two Wimbledon titles since Fred perry. the first British olympic gold medallist since 1908. the only double olympic gold medallist, from any country, in singles events. Davis Cup winner. And now this: world No 1. the only British tennis player to occupy that slot since the Atp began issuing rankings with Ilie Nastase top, on August 23, 1973.
It is no accident that murray has reached this peak. He has traversed the planet hunting down this latest accolade: Rio de Janeiro, Beijing, Shanghai, Vienna, london, paris. murray does that. He sets hugely ambitious targets and meets them.
He employed Ivan lendl because he was sick of coming up short in Grand Slam competitions; re-employed him when he felt he was losing his edge. turned his focus to the Davis Cup because he thought his commitment would give Great Britain a chance. He bought into the london olympics and then into Rio de Janeiro this summer, too, because he is at heart a frustrated team player in an individual sport.
And now, sensing vulnerability at the top, at a time in his life when as a new father he might have considered a reduced schedule, he sought the points and prizes that would yield this latest accolade. He is a truly remarkable figure in an era that would have crushed a man of lesser spirit.
It would have been easy for murray to give up on reaching the pinnacle of his sport. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, later Novak Djokovic — there was no shame in being placed behind that triumvirate. plenty of players have been, and are.
Jo-Wilfried tsonga, David Ferrer, Gael monfils, David Goffin, Kei Nishikori, milos Raonic. Fine players, good players, but not quite good enough. In any other time, maybe they would have had a Grand Slam title or two by now. It was just their misfortune to be born when giants bestrode the game. murray could have been in their number, too. But he refused to settle.
Yes, he was better than the majority of his peers, but he also had a singularity of purpose. He disappeared to warm weather to train for the Australian open, he appointed an exacting, unflinching tutor in lendl, constantly looked for new ideas and means of improvement. He experimented with left-field coaching concepts, made difficult decisions on loyal, longserving members of his backroom staff. He was relentless in his drive, even as a teenager.
And now, here it is. World No 1. Fitting, too, that having achieved this status with an unsatisfying semi-final bye due to Raonic’s withdrawal from the paris masters, murray should then have it confirmed anyway by defeating John Isner in the final.
It was a tough match, too. three sets, more than two hours, a lost tie-break in the middle. At the end he paid tribute to his opponent, the fans, the arena volunteers, the officials, the organisers, his team and his family in that order, before mentioning, almost as an aside, his pleasure at being regarded as the world’s best tennis player. ‘I’ll keep working as hard as I can to keep getting better,’ promised murray.
And that’s why he can afford to be modest. others will do the declaiming for him. And they will continue to find ways to sing his praises, because murray will always find ways to excite and surprise us: he truly is a special one.