‘Andy Murray has the perfect draw to go very far at Wimbledon’

Ewan West 04 Jul 2023 8:53 PM

Andy Murray pumps his fist at Wimbledon

Mats Wilander feels Andy Murray’s “perfect” draw at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships makes “you start dreaming a bit that he can go very far.”

The former world No 1 also declared Murray’s level in his opening round win was as good as he has seen from the 36-year-old for “a few years.”

Murray delivered a dominant display to see off British compatriot Ryan Peniston 6-3, 6-0, 6-1 in his first round match at Wimbledon on Tuesday.

The two-time champion will face either world No 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas or 91st-ranked former US Open winner Dominic Thiem in the second round. Thiem was leading 6-3, 3-4 when the match was suspended due to rain on Tuesday.

Despite their pedigree, both Tsitsipas and Thiem are struggling for form and are far less comfortable on grass than other surfaces. The only seeded player Murray could then face in the third round is Wimbledon debutant Ben Shelton, before a potential last 16 clash with Cameron Norrie or Sebastian Korda.

Seven-time major champion Wilander argued Murray has a great opportunity to have a deep run at the All England Club.

“This is as good as I have seen Murray play for a few years, the way he is moving and his attitude. He was calm, maybe because he was playing against a British player,” the Swede told Eurosport.

“It’s so much easier for him to do it on a grass court because he can keep the ball low and that slice works and he reads the game so well. You look at his draw and you start dreaming a bit that he can go very far.

“I think that for him it’s really important to play players with that style. They are pretty similar in their styles and as long as the grass is green and the bounce is a bit lower it’s easier for him to play these guys. He will find their weaknesses.

“They serve good but don’t serve great. For me it’s a perfect draw for him. It’s much more difficult to play him now than in the quarters or semis when the courts have dried up I believe. It’s a perfect draw for me.”

Former world No 27 Laura Robson also discussed Murray’s relatively slow start in the first set against Peniston.

“Whether that lack of 20 minutes where he comes on the court sweating made a difference, combined with the nerves of playing on Centre Court again, I think it must have done,” said the Brit

“It’s never easy playing someone you know so well and he would have wanted to well. He’s been working away at the Challenger level to get back to his best for this tournament and it’s a lot of pressure to put on yourself.

“So I imagine those first few games were just letting the nerves out and getting used to the emotions of playing at Wimbledon again.”