Wimbledon 2021: All England Club 'planning for three scenarios'
Staging Wimbledon next year is the “number one priority” for the All England Club and holding the tournament without fans is being considered.
Staging Wimbledon next year is the “number one priority” for the All England Club and holding the tournament without fans is being considered.
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In the final profile on the 26 players to rise to No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, ATPTour.com looks at the career of Andy Murray. View Series.
First week at No. 1: 7 November 2016
Total weeks at No. 1: 41
Year-End No. 1s: 2016
As World No. 1
More than eight years after cracking the Top 4 behind Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic for the first time on 8 September 2008, Murray ended the Big Three’s 666-week stranglehold on the World No. 1 position in the FedEx ATP Rankings on 7 November 2016. Having spent 76 weeks at No. 2 across seven stints, Murray’s perseverance paid off as he became the oldest first-time World No. 1 since John Newcombe in June 1974 by reaching the Rolex Paris Masters final in his 12th season as a professional. “The past few months have been the best of my career and I am very proud to have reached No. 1. It has been a goal of mine for the past few years,” said Murray. With a stellar run of results, Murray ended Djokovic’s two-year, four-month run at the top of the game to become the first British man to top the FedEx ATP Rankings. Between ATP Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Paris, the Brit reached 11 finals from 12 events (8-3) to take the top spot. Murray held the World No. 1 position for 41 consecutive weeks, winning 18 of 25 encounters and two of three championship matches during his reign.
Grand Slam Highlights
Murray has captured three major championship trophies, including two titles in front of home support at Wimbledon. After losses in his opening three Grand Slam finals, Murray hired Ivan Lendl at the start of the 2012 ATP Tour season. Despite losing his next major final at Wimbledon in 2012 to match Lendl’s record after four appearances in major finals, Murray broke through at the 2012 US Open to become the first man from Great Britain to win a Grand Slam singles trophy in 76 years. The 32-year-old soon ended Great Britain’s 77-year wait for a home Gentlemen’s Singles champion in 2013, beating World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in straight sets. “It was such a big thing for a British man to win Wimbledon. It had been so long, I was so relieved that I’d done that,” said Murray. “It was a question I’d been asked so many times over the course of my career.” Murray, who owns a 57-10 record at his home Grand Slam, also triumphed at the event in 2016, beating Milos Raonic in the championship match. Each of Murray’s three Grand Slam victories came with Lendl in his corner. Murray has also reached five Australian Open finals (2010-‘11, ’13, ’15-’16) and one Roland Garros championship match (2016).
Nitto ATP Finals Highlights
Murray became the first British player to win the Nitto ATP Finals title in 2016, beating Djokovic in a winner-takes-all championship match at The O2 in London. Both players entered the final one win away from ending the 2016 ATP Tour season as year-end World No. 1 and it was Murray who held his nerve. The Briton claimed his 24th consecutive match win to become the 17th man to finish an ATP Tour season atop the FedEx ATP Rankings and the first man outside the ‘Big Three’ to clinch the year-end No. 1 position since Andy Roddick in 2003. “It was obviously a very important win for me,” said Murray. “It was just a huge match to finish the year, to try and finish No. 1.” Murray’s win capped a memorable run of five consecutive tournament victories. The Dunblane native claimed trophies in Beijing, Shanghai, Vienna and Paris prior to arriving in London. His year-end No. 1 bid was almost ended at the penultimate hurdle by Milos Raonic, who held a match point in their semi-final clash at The O2. Between 2008 and 2016, Murray won 16 of 27 matches across eight appearances at the elite eight-man tournament.
ATP Masters 1000 Highlights
In terms of titles won, Murray is the fifth most successful player in ATP Masters 1000 history (since 1990). Murray owns 14 Masters 1000 trophies, trailing only Djokovic (36) Rafael Nadal (35), Roger Federer (28) and Andre Agassi (17). The 6’3” right-hander lifted three trophies in Canada (2009-’10, ’15) and Shanghai (2010-’11, ’16) and completed two title runs in Miami (2009, ’13), Madrid (2008, ’15) and Cincinnati (2008, ’11). In 2016, Murray also triumphed in Rome and Paris for the first time.
Biggest Rivalries
Born just one week apart, Murray and Djokovic climbed the FedEx ATP Rankings alongside each other and developed one of the most frequent rivalries in recent ATP Tour history. With 36 ATP Head2Head encounters (Djokovic leads 25-11), including 19 finals, the two stars have competed for the greatest prizes in the sport for more than a decade. Murray and Djokovic have met in finals at all four Grand Slam tournaments and at seven of the nine Masters 1000 events. Murray defeated Djokovic to win Grand Slam titles at the 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon and also overcame the Serbian to clinch the Nitto ATP Finals crown and year-end World No. 1 spot in the FedEx ATP Rankings in 2016.
“We’ve played in Grand Slam finals, Olympics and matches like this – it’s been a tough rivalry,” said Murray at the 2016 Nitto ATP Finals. “I’ve lost many of them, but I am happy to have got the win today to clinch the year-end No. 1. It’s very special, it’s something that I never expected.”
Since their first meeting in the 2005 Bangkok final, Murray and Federer have established a memorable rivalry on the ATP Tour. Murray and Federer have contested 25 encounters, with Federer edging their ATP Head2Head rivalry 14-11. The pair has met in eight finals (Federer leads 5-3), including three Grand Slam finals, but Murray triumphed in the Gold Medal match at the 2012 London Olympics. “I do really enjoy playing Roger,” said Murray. “It’s obviously a great experience every time you get to play against him.”
Legacy
As the first British Grand Slam singles champion since Fred Perry in 1936, Murray will be remembered as one of the greatest players during a golden era for the sport. With one of the best returns in the history of the game, impressive variety and a counter-punching style of play, Murray has battled throughout his career to earn 46 tour-level trophies. With victory at the 2016 Nitto ATP Finals, the Glasgow-born star became the 17th man to end an ATP Tour season as World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings.
Murray has also enjoyed considerable success representing Great Britain throughout his career. Just four weeks after losing to Federer in the 2012 Wimbledon final and shedding tears in an emotional runner-up speech, Murray returned to SW19 backed by a patriotic home crowd. The 6’3” right-hander gained his revenge and claimed gold for his country in emphatic fashion, beating Federer in straight sets on Centre Court.
After leading his nation as the opening ceremony flagbearer at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Murray became the first man in history to win back-to-back Olympic singles gold medals. Supported by a carnival atmosphere, the Briton outlasted Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro over four hours and two minutes to capture his second gold medal. Murray also led Great Britain to its 10th Davis Cup title in 2015, its first success in the competition for 79 years.
Overall Match Win-Loss Record: 676-200 (as at 15 October, 2020)
Overall Titles/Finals Record: 46-22
Memorable Moment
After losing his fourth Grand Slam final in as many appearances at Wimbledon in 2012, Murray returned to SW19 one year later to end Great Britain’s 77-year wait for a Gentlemen’s Singles champion. The 26-year-old, who had claimed the 2012 London Olympics singles gold medal at the All England Club, cruised through to the quarter-finals before comeback victories against Fernando Verdasco and Jerzy Janowicz. Backed by 15,000 fans on Centre Court and a further 4,000 supporters on Henman Hill, Murray faced Djokovic, the man he had beaten to win his maiden Grand Slam title at the 2012 US Open. After edging the opening two sets, Murray recovered from a 2-4 deficit in the third set to serve for the trophy at 5-4. As the Centre Court crowd struggled to contain its excitement, Murray was unable to convert three consecutive championship points from 40/0 and was soon forced to save three break points. Murray finally clinched the 11-minute game, and the trophy, on his fourth championship point as Djokovic fired a backhand into the net. “He came up with some unbelievable shots in that last game,” said Murray. “I think that’s why at the end of the match I didn’t quite know what was going on. [There were] just a lot of different emotions at that time. And the end, mentally, that last game will be the toughest game I’ll play in my career, ever.”
Djokovic on Murray
“I will carry beautiful memories from the court and off the court with him. We’ve played lots of epic matches.”
Murray on Murray
“I always said that maybe if I played [in] another era maybe I would have won more, but I wouldn’t have been as good a tennis player. I think that’s how you should be judged at the end of your career, not just on how much you’re winning but on the people you’re competing against and how good a player you actually were.”
Broadcaster/Journalist Graeme Agars
Only two tennis players have been knighted and Sir Andrew Barron Murray is one of them. The other is Sir Norman Brooks, a talented Australian who played with great success in the early 1900s. Such is the esteem that Murray is held in by the population of the United Kingdom.
The Briton was knighted by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace in May 2019, in recognition of his two Wimbledon title runs in 2013 and 2016. After his 2013 win, the first by a British Player since Fred Perry won the last of his three straight trophies in 1936, he was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by Prince William and was also featured on four Royal Mail stamps in the UK. Murray is also the only sportsperson to be crowned the BBC Sports Personality of the Year on three occasions.
Murray’s hard-hitting game makes him dangerous on any fast surface and, in particular, on grass. His big serve helps set up points and his court movement, until slowed by hip problems, was a real match winner. When needed he has also proven very efficient at the net.
That all-round game has served him well at the Grand Slams, on the ATP Tour and at the Olympic Games, where it earned him two consecutive Gold Medals at London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016.
In 2018 and 2019, Murray underwent surgery on his troublesome right hip. His much publicised ‘resurfacing’ treatment in 2019 proved successful, allowing him to continue playing on the ATP Tour. Off the court, he has made many valuable contributions to the game, including an influential term on the ATP Player Council.
Marcelo Demoliner and Matwe Middelkoop edged closer to their second Russian ATP Tour title as a team on Thursday, beating Taylor Fritz and Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 at the St. Petersburg Open.
The Brazilian-Dutch pairing converted three of the four break points it created to reach the semi-finals at the ATP 500. Last year’s Moscow champions are through to their third semi-final of the year, after claiming the Cordoba Open trophy and reaching the last four at the Argentina Open in February.
Demoliner and Middelkoop will face Alexander Bublik and Reilly Opelka for a place in the championship match. Bublik and Opelka saved three match points to defeat Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev on Wednesday.
Jurgen Melzer and Edouard Roger-Vasselin rallied from a set down to book their place in the semi-finals. Attempting to reach their first final as a pairing, the second seeds clinched a 4-6, 6-1, 10-8 win against Russian wild cards Daniil Golubev and Evgenii Tiurnev after 64 minutes.
Melzer and Roger-Vasselin will face Ben McLachlan and Franko Skugor in the semi-finals. The unseeded duo beat Adrian Mannarino and Fabrice Martin 7-5, 6-4.
Herbert/Mahut Reach Cologne Semi-finals
Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herbert were clinical at the bett1HULKS Indoors on Thursday. The Frenchmen saved 12 of 13 break points and converted four of their five break chances to move past Aussies John Millman and Jordan Thompson 6-3, 6-3.
The second seeds are chasing their second indoor hardcourt title of the year. Mahut and Herbert captured the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament trophy in February. The pair will next face New York titlists Dominic Inglot and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi, who beat fourth seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Ken Skupski 7-6(7), 2-6, 10-5.
Daniell/Oswald Book Place In Sardinia Final
Marcus Daniell and Philipp Oswald played with confidence behind their first serves to claim their spot in the Forte Village Sardegna Open championship match. The third seeds dropped just five points behind their first serves (25/30) to beat John Peers and Michael Venus 6-4, 6-3.
Simone Bolelli and Maximo Gonzalez also advanced in Sardinia, reaching the semi-finals with a 6-2, 6-4 victory against Lorenzo Sonego and Andrea Vavassori 6-2, 6-4. The Italian-Argentine tandem will face top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah for a place in the final.
Iga Swiatek says she has been in shock since winning the French Open, and is aiming to win the other three Grand Slams titles and an Olympic medal.
After dropping serve twice in the first set, Reilly Opelka produced a clinical comeback performance to eliminate defending champion Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 at the St. Petersburg Open.
The 6’11” American saved four break points in the deciding set, before ripping a crosscourt forehand winner on his first break opportunity to complete the biggest win of his career. Opelka claimed breaks in the final games of the second and third sets to complete a one-hour, 55-minute victory and improve his record to 6-6 against Top 10 opponents.
“It was ugly for the first set-and-a-half. I felt like I barely won any points on his serve, but part of that is just because of my opponent… Daniil is an absolute nightmare to play, especially for a guy like me because he just runs every ball down,” said Opelka in an on-court interview.
The Delray Beach champion entered the tournament on a three-match losing streak, but has raised his game in crucial moments on the indoor hard courts to reach his fourth quarter-final of the year. In the first round, the 23-year-old survived a second-set tie-break before completing a three-set victory against Nino Serdarusic.
“It is always a tough match, playing one of the best players in the world in general, but especially at [his] home. [It is] a great win for me,” said Opelka.
All of Opelka and Medvedev’s ATP Head2Head meetings have been contested in the United States or Russia. On each occasion, the home player has been defeated. Opelka lost both his previous matches against the World No. 6 in final-set tie-breaks at the 2017 Citi Open in Washington, D.C. and the 2019 Miami Open presented by Itau.
[WATCH LIVE 1]“It was ugly for the first set-and-a-half. I felt like I barely won any points on his serve, but part of that is just because of my opponent… Daniil is an absolute nightmare to play, especially for a guy like me because he just runs every ball down,” said Opelka.
The World No. 36 will next face last year’s runner-up Borna Coric in the quarter-finals. Coric booked his place in the last eight with a 6-3, 7-5 win against Russian wild card Roman Safiullin 6-3, 7-5. Opelka battled from a set down to beat Coric in their only previous ATP Head2Head encounter at last year’s Western & Southern Open.
Fourth seed Karen Khachanov survived a scare against countryman Aslan Karatsev. The World No. 17 was forced to recover from a set down to beat the 27-year-old 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 on Centre Court. Khachanov dropped just six points behind his first serve in the final two sets (36/42) to turn the match in his favour.
Karatsev was attempting to continue his strong run of form since the resumption of the ATP Tour in August. The World No. 117 returned to action on the ATP Challenger Tour and won 15 of his 16 matches across three weeks in the Czech Republic to claim trophies in Prague and Ostrava. Karatsev’s only loss during that period came against Stan Wawrinka.
Khachanov will face Milos Raonic for the first time in the quarter-finals. The Canadian saved all four break points he faced to beat Alexander Bublik 6-3, 6-2 in 66 minutes.
American Sam Querrey leaves Russia two days after testing positive for coronavirus at the St Petersburg Open, say tournament organisers.
Alexander Zverev began his title bid at the bett1HULKS Indoors with a 6-4, 6-1 victory against Fernando Verdasco on Thursday.
Chasing his third ATP Tour trophy on home soil, the two-time Munich champion was dominant on serve against the former World No. 7. Zverev fired seven aces and won 84 per cent of his service points (32/38) to improve to 4-2 in his ATP Head2Head series against Verdasco after 63 minutes.
“It is nice to be done in just over an hour, especially against Fernando because playing a first match back on hard courts against Fernando can always be tricky,” said Zverev in an on-court interview. “He is one of the most powerful opponents that you can have. I am happy to get the win and happy to be in the quarter-finals.”
[WATCH LIVE 2]Zverev is attempting to claim his first ATP Tour trophy since the Gonet Geneva Open in May 2019. The 6’6” German, who owns a 16-8 record in 2020, advanced to his first final of the season at last month’s US Open (l. to Thiem).
The top seed will meet South Africa’s Lloyd Harris for a semi-final spot. Harris claimed his place in the quarter-finals with a 7-6(5), 7-6(2) win against Steve Johnson on Wednesday.
“[Harris] is a young guy as well, similar to my age… My brother played him once so I am going to ask my brother a few questions. It is going to be interesting,” said Zverev.
Third seed Felix-Auger Aliassime continued his strong run of indoor form this year. The #NextGenATP Canadian, who finished as runner-up in Rotterdam and Marseille in February, did not face a break point en route to a 6-4, 6-1 win against Swiss qualifier Henri Laaksonen.
Auger-Aliassime will attempt to reach his fourth semi-final of the season when he faces Radu Albot in the quarter-finals. The Moldovan outlasted Oscar Otte 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 on Wednesday.
“[Radu] is quick. He puts a lot of balls back,” said Auger-Aliassime. “[He is] among the shorter guys on Tour, so not the biggest serve, but I am sure he can place it very well. It is going to be tricky because maybe my approaches are going to come back more than today… I am going to have to play one, two, three or more balls, so I am going to be ready for that challenge.”
Roberto Bautista recorded just his second win in seven ATP Head2Head encounters against Gilles Simon, beating the Frenchman 6-4, 7-6(5). The second seed was forced to save two set points at 6-5 in the second set, before completing victory in two hours and 19 minutes.
Bautista Agut will attempt to clinch his 20th victory of the season (19-7) when he faces Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals. The sixth seed claimed a 6-4, 6-3 win against Mischa Zverev on Wednesday.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina recovered from 3-6, 0-2 down to battle past eighth seed Marin Cilic. The #NextGenATP Spaniard reached his first quarter-final of the year after two hours and 22 minutes, withstanding 12 aces to record a 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-2 victory.
Davidovich Fokina will meet Dennis Novak for a place in the semi-finals. The Austrian defeated fourth seed Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-4 on Wednesday.
Andrey Rublev strengthened his chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time on Thursday by reaching the St. Petersburg Open quarter-finals.
Third seed Rublev improved to a 31-7 record in a career-best 2020, which includes three ATP Tour titles, with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory over Ugo Humbert of France in two hours and 13 minutes at the ATP 500-level event. He will next play Briton Cameron Norrie.
Rublev, who is currently No. 10 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, has 3,009 points in the battle to clinch one of the two remaining singles berths at the season finale, to be held at The O2 in London from 15-22 November. But No. 9-ranked Matteo Berrettini, who sits in the final automatic qualification berth, has 3,075 points and will lose 200 points on 9 November from a round-robin win at the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals.
[WATCH LIVE 1]Denis Shapovalov, who is also a contender for a first-time spot in London, is through to the St. Petersburg quarter-finals for the second time in three years after overcoming Belarusian qualifier Ilya Ivashka 6-1, 6-4 in 66 minutes.
The Canadian is currently No. 12 in the FedEx ATP Rankings with 2,740 points — 335 points behind Berrettini. Shapovalov will next challenge fifth-seeded Swiss Stan Wawrinka. The pair has a 1-1 ATP Head2Head record with Wawrinka winning their last match 6-4, 7-6(4) at the 2019 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam.
