Murray Shares How He Rallies Wimbledon Crowds

Dozens of points are played in a professional tennis match but oftentimes, only a few points during the match’s biggest moments decide who wins and who loses, and who moves on at a Grand Slam championship and who books a flight home early.

Andy Murray, who advanced to his seventh Wimbledon semi-final on Wednesday, knows this well. That’s why Murray, No. 2 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, will go out of his way to encourage the thousands of fans who attend his matches. Every little bit they can help matters, he said.

“I think it can help, yeah,” Murray said. “That’s why it’s important to try to use the crowd, if you can, to your advantage, because they do make a difference. In long matches, tough matches, even if it’s half a per cent difference, it’s good.”

Murray needed every benefit he could on Wednesday to prevail against the confident Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The Scot won 7-6(10), 6-1, 3-6, 4-6, 6-1 and the Centre Court crowd loved most of it. The second seed urged the fans throughout the three-hour and 54-minute match, tossing his arms in the air and shouting at himself to rally everyone behind him.

“The crowd was unbelievable today,” Murray said.

It was a little work to get the crowd going today, though. For three hours and 17 minutes, they had been entertained by another five-set quarter-final contest. Roger Federer came back from 0-2 sets down to beat Croat Marin Cilic 6-7(4), 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(9), 6-3. It was the 10^th time Federer had overcome the deficit, tying an Open Era record.

“It’s totally understandable that’s going to be the case after a match like that. That was a great match,” Murray said.

Murray persisted in encouraging the crowd, though, and the pro-British crowd roared for him as well.

“When you get out there, obviously it’s up to you to create an atmosphere a little bit, too,” he said. “I try to get the crowd into it as much as I can when I’m playing a home tournament.”

Both Murray and Federer won on Centre Court today, but the fans didn’t do too bad, either. “They got two pretty good matches, as well, I think,” Murray said.