Can Andy Murray get mojo back and raise his game?

At full stretch: Andy Murray lunges for a point on his way to the semi-finals last year but goes into this season’s Grand Slam short of form
13 April 2012

Forget about Roger Federer losing on grass or Rafael Nadal failing to beat one of his countrymen who normally have nightmares when they face the world No1. The big debate for Wimbledon is: Has Andy Murray lost his tennis mojo?

Federer's defeat by Lleyton Hewitt in the Halle Final was acceptable as he owns six Wimbledon titles and even Nadal's loss against the dangerous

Feliciano Lopez at Queen's could be excused after his unbeaten run on clay brought a fifth French Open title.

However, Murray's tame third-round failure against world No90 Mardy Fish at the AEGON Championships only highlighted his problems ahead of next week's Grand Slam.

After losing the Australian Open Final in January, Murray has been maddeningly inconsistent and his body language has become so negative you worry the Wimbledon fans will find it hard to fully embrace the Scot who is still battling against the widely held view that he is anti-English. This resulted from banter with Tim Henman which led to Murray stating he would support anyone rather than England at the 2006 World Cup.

Murray might be carrying the tennis hopes of a nation — world No256 Jamie Baker is the only other Briton in the men's singles — but he still polarises opinion in England and the sight of a scowling Scot on Centre Court will not convince the doubters to give him undying support.

Boris Becker recognises the dangers of the situation and given the way the German used the crowd to such good effect during his three title triumphs at SW19, Murray should take heed of his advice.

"Andy hasn't been the same since the Australian final and needs to get his act together because he looks frustrated on the court at the moment," said Becker, who will be part of the BBC commentary team at Wimbledon. "He seems to have mentally gone walkabout since Australia.

"A tennis court can be a lonely place if you are frustrated and a little confused about what you need to do to win and that shows.

"I want to see him more positive on court, to enjoy being the centre of attention at Wimbledon and use the 10,000 fans who will be cheering him. Andy needs to get the fans excited about his tennis and adopt a different mental approach.

"He is a great player, earned the right to be No2 in the world and knows what it takes to win titles but you have to keep improving all the time. Look at Roger and Rafa, they have made improvements and kept moving forward because opponents are going to look to exploit any weaknesses.

"Andy is never going to be a serve and volleyer or super aggressive from the baseline but has a successful style of tennis and is well aware of the weak areas that need attention."

Murray's problems started as soon as he finished crying on the podium following a straight-sets loss by Federer in Melbourne. He appeared confused about how to take his game forward and during the clay-court period Murray failed to find the right balance between his natural counter-punching game and the need to be more aggressive.

The 23-year-old is supported by Team Murray, headed by coach Miles Maclagen but, in truth, they dance to his tune as paid employees.

Becker is one of many former tennis stars who recognise the areas in his game that need attention, which include raising his first serve percentage and giving the second serve added bite.

Former British No1 Greg Rusedski said: "Murray's serve needs improving and he has been pulling off his forehand and losing power. He also needs to step in and use his great backhand down the line."

Off the court, Murray now has the support again of girlfriend Kim Sears after a hiatus in their relationship and he is adamant that any problems in his tennis life are confined to what he does on the court. Murray said: "I don't know whether it's focus or a lack of confidence."

British tennis fans are about to discover if he has found the answer to that conundrum and while Murray may not be able to smile his way into their hearts, he could at least try to give the impression he is having fun out there.

For details of the BBC's exclusive live coverage of Wimbledon, go to www.bbc.co.uk/sport

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