Drained Andy Murray Considered Pulling Out Of His Match Against Bernard Tomic

by Tom Gainey | January 25th, 2016, 7:48 am
  • 38 Comments

It’s been a tough, emotional few days for Andy Murray at the Australian Open. The Scot’s father-in-law Nigel Sears suffered a health scare Saturday night during Ana Ivanovic’s loss while Murray was also on court. After the match, Murray skipped any press obligations and immediately went to the hospital.

Sears has since been cleared and on his way home to England, but Murray whose wife is expecting a child in a few week, is drained. So much so that he even contemplated not playing his match Monday against Bernard Tomic in the fourth round.

“To be honest, like today, when I woke up I felt quite drained, quite tired,” Murray said after beating Tomic 64, 64, 76. “As the day sort of went on and I decided to play, I started to focus a little bit better.


“Certainly I was trying to just concentrate on the match when I was out there, but, yeah, like I said, it’s been a hard, hard few days. Hopefully gets better the next few days. I just can’t believe something like that happened a few days ago. It’s shocking. Nigel is an unbelievably fit guy. Very, very scary.”

The four-time finalist continues his journey to a first title Wednesday against David Ferrer.

“He obviously works extremely hard. He’s in good shape,” Murray said. “He fights so hard in every single match. He’s been rewarded for that with an unbelievably consistent career at the top of the game.This year he’s made some changes to his racquet as well, which would suggest that he’s still trying to improve and trying to learn and do different things, as well.”


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38 Comments for Drained Andy Murray Considered Pulling Out Of His Match Against Bernard Tomic

RZ Says:

Hopefully the drain is over. Andy will need all of his energy against Ferrer. Andy has the game to beat him, but Ferrer has the game to deplete a drained player’s last reserves.


Daniel Says:

Seems there is a lot going on agaisnt Andy for this AO, baby due in a few days, now this issue with his father in law. Maybe his head won’t be up for ti. Just hope if he is to lose, that is is before finals because another defeat in finals won’t be good at all.


calmdownplease Says:

Agreed but FFS Mr Sears is alright
People get heat stroke or whatever
He must become more focussed!
And If Andy is taken to 5 with Ferrer this time, he might as well come home
The court is medium fast and he must be aggressive.
Playing long rallies with Ferrer will show that he and Mauresmo have learned nothing
I am hoping for Andy in 3 as he is certainly capable of it, but we shall see.


RZ Says:

@CDP – we know NOW that Nigel Sears is okay, but it was probably a long time before he was given the all clear. Keep in mind that Andy left right after a match to go to the hospital. He was probably up long hours and didn’t go through his regular routines (physio, stretching, hyrdating, massage, ice bath, etc.) due to being at the hospital. That can throw off his training and his game. But he good news is that he got through it and can get back to normal with his next match.

@Daniel – what doesn’t kill him makes him stronger!


calmdownplease Says:

You’re very correct RZ
And I’m sure he’ll be fine next match.
I simply want a smooth tournament for him and for Andy to maybe even shock the world and win it!
A fitting maternity gift is it not?
But the second week must be on another level
Still Fed and Novak have not been looking particularly amazing either, so there is that.


Dave Says:

I have a few questions about the court speed. Are the courts playing faster this year than last year? For example, the courts looked so slow in the Simon vs Nole match during the day when they should be faster. Yet, the courts looked faster during the Federer vs Goffin match. Is that just style differences making it look faster? Because shouldn’t a night time match have slower courts? And not faster? I have watched most of the main matches on Rod Laver court, and the courts look slow sometimes and fast other times. It’s really hard to tell at this point. Anyone have any observations?


RZ Says:

Dave – I don’t know the answer to your question but I would add that having the roof closed on the main show courts would also affect speed.


Ben Pronin Says:

I think it’s the contrast in styles. The court looked very slow during the Djokovic-Simon match.


MMT Says:

Dave: Usually the players would be the first to indicate that there’s something to the speed of the ball/court. I think the Fed Goffin match was down to the fact that both those players play close to the baseline, whereas as good a player as Simon is, he is, in my opinion, a (very) high class pusher who absorbs and dissipates his opponent’s pace.

Have you noticed a difference in speed between the men and the women? As I understand it, the women use a ball that fluffs less and/or is lighter and thus has less spin and drag, making their shots relatively faster. I believe last year at the AO the highest average ground stroke speed was Madison Keys?


Dave Says:

I agree Ben. It does look very slow. If it was faster, even on an off day, I feel Nole would have been able to hit through Simon somewhat more easily than he was able to if the courts were playing fast this year.


J-Kath Says:

Agree RZ. Hope the strain on Andy seeps away so that he can at least give himself an even-steven change against Ferrer…under normal circumstances would not hesitate to say he would win it…now too many conflicting emotions/thoughts going thru his mind.
Fingers crossed.


Dave Says:

Thanks for the input MMT. Good points.


Travis Bickle Says:

Nigel Sears should be delighted to have such a devoted son-in-law! Consider pulling out of a GS match because father-in-law had a mild heat stroke?!? Just wow…

What would have Muzza done had Nigel died? Take a year-long break from tennis…


Margot Says:

He’s a sensitive TB and that’s why some of us love him xxxx
BTW Hooray, there now seem to be enough AM fans on here for us to have an contretemps or two.
Result!


Gypsy Gal Says:

Travis Bickle I left you post on the other thread thats now gone,by way of an apology after watching highlights of the Raonic/Wawarinka match….


Okiegal Says:

@Margot……C’mon Andy! Now, if Kim can hold off on the little one…. I am glad her father got OK because in her delicate condition she didn’t need the extra added stress. Hope he can pull this off and win the whole ball of wax!!


Travis Bickle Says:

Very nice of you Alison! Thanks.
But no apology was needed.

I just called bullshit on you saying Raonic game left you cold…
Now knowing that you said that without seeing his play against Stan, I understand. I found his game extremely boring too before this year.

But ever since the Brisbane final this year, he is showing one of the most exciting styles in today’s tennis.


calmdownplease Says:

`under normal circumstances would not hesitate to say he would win it’

If he can’t win it at least (as Daniel said) we will be spared the 5th final’s loss.
A record NOT to be proud of.
Because he certainly wouldn’t have had a chance against Novak anyway.


Dave Says:

Honestly, until I see Nole, bounce back from the last match with my own eyes, he isn’t beating anyone in this form. Him bouncing back is not a guarantee by any means. He is still very vulnerable at this point.


Dave Says:

I have never said this before, but I honestly think Nole plays a lot better and more consistent in 250, 500 and 1000’s on average than at majors. When he wins majors, it’s never in convincing style like how he beat Nadal last tournament or world tour finals against Federer. He holds back in majors on average more and trys to play it safe. It drives me crazy actually, haha. Coming from a Nole supporter. He seems to have to have his back against the wall to turn it on at a major. He plays way more freely when there isn’t a major on the line at other tournaments. That’s what I have noticed.


Travis Bickle Says:

Nole was brutally attacked by DIRTY british media. It’s taking its toll on him.
They came up with the match fixing scandal and, despite his name not being on any of the lists floating around, they kept focusing only on him and kept pestering him with thinly veiled innuendo. It is hard to endure that kind of orchestrated media attack, even for the mental giant like Nole!

I am disappointed that no more posters on this site did not see it and voiced their disapproval of dirty media antics against him in Melbourne.

Hopefully, the Simon’s match was the valve that let all that bad steam out and Nole has reset and ready to start serious business from now till Sunday,,, at great disappointment and sorrow of Fed and Murray backing media!


Daniel Says:

Murray should get pass Ferrer. Ferrer doesn’t have a serve weapon and Andy is serving decent he will push Ferrer serve more.

Than he should get Raonic which is a match with not much rhythm for him and he handles big serve like no one.

He has a possibility to reach finals fresh if he beats Ferrer in no longer than 4 sets and even if he plays 4 sets with Raonic there won’t be many long rallies. As long as he avoids 5 sets in next two matches he could arrive fresh in finals.

The top half if Berdy and Kei come out to play those next matches could be ruff and if Fed and Djoko indeed play in semis that match can go five sets as well, as a few of their HC Slams matches before.

My point if Andy sees his chance and focus he could arrive in finals in better shape than any of the other top 4.

And as Dave point out Djoko’s form had a big question mark because he shouldn’t be pushed to 5 by Simon, not on paper. Of course, Novak can reach god mode level and win easy next 3 matches. For a guy who won all last 6 tournaments he played since Cincy, that wouldn’t surprise me at all.


Daniel Says:

Dave, maybe is because majors worth more and even fora champion like Novak, he feels more pressure. He know what is at stake. That is why last year when he faced possibility of losing final to Andy he change his game completely and went for it.

Agaisnt Wawa in RG he was passive and suddenly Wawa was super confident and the match was slipping by him.Think he learnt his lesson by now.


Dave Says:

I hope he has learned his lesson by now. All year last year, the best form that I saw him in was both tournaments in China. Nothing came close to those 2 tournaments for me. And also Doha was amazing as well at certain times. In China he was at a high level every single match. He didn’t face the same pressure in those tournaments. My gut is telling me that if he can get through the match today, he has a good possibility of winning. But he has to get through the match today. Nishikori will need to take advantage of Nole while he is still a bit wounded. I really don’t see how he goes into this match feeling 100% fresh after a 4 hour and 32 minute match that wasn’t only physically grueling, but mentally exhausting. There is no way that doesn’t take a toll on a person. He will need to show his desire to really fight for it tonight. As an illustration, when an animal is being cornered and feels threatened, it will attack. Nole needs to attack tonight and not hold back at all. Nole will say that he feels great, but in reality there is no way he can be 100% fresh tonight after that grueling match. Also, Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness always hits harder the second day than the first day. Nole hasn’t played a match this long for a very long time. I actually can’t ever remember a match where Nole seemed so conflicted emotionally inside for such a long period of time. I don’t know if I have ever seen him battle himself for so long during a match, looking for answers.


Dave Says:

With Federer, you never know what you are going to get so far in this tournament. If the Federer that showed up against Dimitrov is playing, he will lose to Berdych, if the Federer that was playing against Goffin is playing, he will win. Anything in between those to levels, it’s a coin toss, either way.


Dave Says:

Out of all of the players left in the tournament, the 2 guys that have showed the highest form so far, at times, is Berdych and Raonic. They have at certain times looked amazing. The question is, can they pull of this form against the top players? That remains to be seen.


Margot Says:

“At times” is right Dave, but “at times” too they have looked pretty beatable. But I haven’t seen all their matches.
Of all the players I’ve seen so far Fed’s looked the best, but again even he’s had poor patches.


Dave Says:

Berdych in his second and 3rd round matches specifically. Raonic in his 3rd round match and some of his 4th round match. They looked better than I have maybe seen them before. I can’t say Federer looked that great based on one match against Goffin, who clearly wasn’t at his best and even said it took him 2 sets just to get used to the courts, because he hadn’t played on those courts pryor. Fed still had his shanks even in a match he dominated. The second and 3rd round matches for Federer, were really not at a high level by Feds standards.


Dave Says:

The only time Nole has looked close to peak was in his second round match, for the first 2 sets, and the first set against Seppi. That won’t cut it either.


Wog Boy Says:

Dave,
The courts are same speed as last and previous year, when they were made faster than previous years, but MCA is slower, according to Nole, and with lower bounce, he played his Seppi match there.

Travis Bickle,
Few of us, Nole fans, did say exactly what you said about unfair (understatement) pressure on Nole, but no fans of other players chipped in their opinion..

Lady,
Do I remember correctly that Pit Samprams was playing his match in RLA when he was told that his long time coach and mentor died and he kept crying until the end of the match , on and off? It was really heartbreaking watching, anybody else remember?
Wasn’t Nole’s father gravelly ill during one WTF, when he had to be transported to Germany for treatment since they couldn’t work out in Belgrade what was wrong with him, it was blood poisoning, Nole kept playing WTF and dedicated his win to his father who was still in ospital in Germany fighting for his life.


Wog Boy Says:

^^ I don’t know where did that “Lady” came from, it was supposed to say “Lastly “


Wog Boy Says:

I found it, It was in 1995, Pit played Courrier, and his coach hasn’t died yet but Pit was told that he is gravelly ill, and this is how he reacted in that match:

http://youtu.be/yyrALjicZnA


Margot Says:

Wog Boy the worst of the “gutter press” is owned by Rupert Murdoch.


Wog Boy Says:

Yes Margot,
And he is Australian:( but since he had to give away his Australian citizenship in favor of American in order to run his business empire from America, I prefer to call him American ;)


Wog Boy Says:

Margot,

The most powerful and influential families in Australia were Packer and Murdoch families, they basicaly owned all media outlets including TV and radio stations and were running the country and governments for ages and fighting each others, they hated the guts of each other. Packer family is not anymore in that business since Kerry Packer (ince the richest man in Australia) died, his son James sold it and they are now owning and running mostly casinos all over the world, Murdoch family is stil in the same business as you pointed out.


Wog Boy Says:

Just to finish, James Packer keeps changing the wives every two years, as soon as they give birth he founds new one. His next one is Mariah Carey, I know courbon loves Mariah Carey:)


Margot Says:

@Wog Boy
I hate the “gutter press” and Murdoch/Packer/Black et al. They had far too much power to set agendas. But one of the best things about the net is their power is lessened. In fact I’d be surprised if paper media is anyone’s primary source of news anymore.

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