Result: Djokovic beat Murray 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-0…
The Australian Open has a very special meaning for me. I won it twice on grass when most TV’s were made by Sony and you had to crank the dial to find about 30 channels…
Having played on every center court of the world and winning many 5 set matches (18-4) I think I have a pretty good idea of what happens with your body, your game, your mind at different times of the match. We relive those same feelings through these matches, a bit more dull but nevertheless, we kind-of “relive†those stresses.
Murray is back! But in what way? He has had back surgery, lots of things happening in his life. He was not expected to be in the finals of this major but he played very well throughout the two weeks to get to the finals. Having won two majors plus a gold at the Olympics, this stage is no stranger to him. He knows what it takes to win at this level. So what happened??
Watching the match today I can easily understand the “ebb and flow†of the match and how situations develop to influence the outcome of the match. Here is my version of what happened…
The first two sets went to tie breakers. Both men played an incredibly high level of tennis with groundstrokes being hit at maximum velocity and accuracy when they were balanced with fantastic defensive skills from both men. They evenly matched each other, both physically and mentally, technically and tactically. I honestly could not predict who would win at that beginning of the third set.
Murray got off to a very good start in the third set leading 2-0 with a break of serve but unfortunately he was so “relieved†to feel his nose in front that he played a loose game on Djokovic’s serve and it was a love game for Djokovic in less than a minute and it was back to the grind even though Murray was up a break 2-1. Soon it was 3-3 with Djokovic breaking back to even the score…
We all know that when things go “bad†for both players, the body language shows it. Djokovic lost that second set and we could see he was trying to suddenly stretch his quads, walking around shaking his head, looking a bit dejected. This type of behavior in some corners is called “gamesmanship†but honestly, Murray should know this is Novak’s m/o and should use it to “fuel†himself up to do even better. Murray did it only briefly. A great momentum lost within seconds…
Murray on the other hand looked fresh, had a spring in his step, rarely looked “pained†and I thought for a second that Murray may just “outmuscle†Djokovic today. I was wrong to assume that…
When Murray got broken and Djokovic leveled the score at 3-3 in the third set after Murray had a break point and hit a routine rally backhand in the net, little did we know that was the absolute turning point of the match… Djokovic won 9 games in a row, that is 5 service breaks in a row! Amazing. A complete “deflateâ€â€¦. sad to witness.
From a mental standpoint this was an epic fail by Murray. Easier said than done but when one steps on the biggest stages of professional tennis, one must understand that you are “laying it all out there for every Tom, Dick and Harry to see!†Criticism abounds from every corner. You better have a thick skin but you must be even tougher on yourself! It matters ONLY what you think and what you DO! Forget everything else!
In my opinion we saw a Murray from a few years ago before he joined Ivan Lendl!
I by no means fault any of this “loss†on Mauresmo. She has a very difficult guy to work with IMHO. She knows the game, she knows Murray now but until Murray looks in the mirror and ask himself, do I really want to make a leap forward within myself and not let this type of match in a tournament slip like that, ever again, so this “effort†does not define my tennis character. Murray kept hitting the ball but he had gone †walkaboutâ€. His fight was gone, checked out, gone….. IMHO, Lendl would have considered walking out of the stadium after the third set.
Only Murray can make this better for himself, not his mom, not his coach, not his trainer, nobody but himself. I don’t even think he needs a sports psychologist! He knows when and what happens when his “head goesâ€! I know, I have been there too! Most of us that played at that level understand that concept….
This match could have been another epic but it fizzled at the half way mark….
At the awards ceremony Murray was a million miles away. Djokovic tried to “lighten†up his mood by congratulating Murray on his engagement and wished him many kids. Murray did not even hear him….. no smile, no acknowledgement….. blank stare. Maybe he was already thinking….â€What the hell did I just do to myself.â€
We can peel this match open like an onion and dissect each set, each momentum swing, each stat etc. (btw…. Cahill and Gilbert are by far the best in the commentary booth). Murray has to look at the pressure his weak winning percentage on his second serves put on his game but that is just a matter of hitting it harder… the other issue is much more important and harder to fix. Too much fist pumping and screaming at yourself, depletes the emotional capital too soon.
Whether he is just going to ignore this “mental loss†and keep doing what he is used to doing or make a change “within†that we as spectators will only see when he finds himself in these very important matches and does find that extra gear in his tennis life, remains to be seen.
Djokovic is by far the best player on the planet right now. He has everything. I see no weaknesses. Well done on winning a 5th Australian Open! The most titles “Down Under†in the modern era. Unbelievable accomplishment.
Can’t wait for the clay court season to arrive! It is going to be interesting.
I am going to sleep for 24 hours straight to relieve this sleep deprived body…
