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- published: 18 Mar 2011
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Michael McIntyre | |
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McIntyre at the British Academy Television Awards 2009 |
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Birth name | Michael Hazen James McIntyre |
Born | (1976-02-21) 21 February 1976 (age 36) Merton, London, England |
Medium | Stand-up, Television |
Nationality | British |
Years active | 1999–present |
Genres | Social satire Observational comedy |
Influences | Woody Allen, Billy Connolly[1] |
Spouse | Kitty McIntyre (m. 2003) «start: (2003)»"Marriage: Kitty McIntyre to Michael McIntyre" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Michael_McIntyre) |
Notable works and roles | Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow Live at the Apollo |
Website | http://www.michaelmcintyre.co.uk/ |
Michael Hazen James McIntyre (born 21 February 1976) is a British stand-up comedian. As well as his stand-up, he has performed on programmes such as Live at the Apollo and has his own programme, Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow.
McIntyre has released two stand-up DVDs; Live and Laughing in 2008 featured material from his first nationwide tour, while Michael McIntyre: Hello Wembley was released in November 2009 following a set at Wembley Arena. The former was the fastest selling debut stand-up DVD ever, and Hello Wembley is the fastest selling stand-up DVD in UK chart history, selling over a million copies.[2] In 2009 McIntyre performed live to half a million people and won Best Live Stand-up at the British Comedy Awards.
In 2010, McIntyre released his autobiography, Life and Laughing: My Story, and also became the youngest-ever host of the Royal Variety Performance.[3] He started as a judge on the fifth series of Britain's Got Talent in April 2011.[4] He is to embark on his second nationwide tour in 2012.[5]
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McIntyre was born in Merton, southwest London, and raised in Hampstead.[6] McIntyre's parents were both in show business: his Canadian father, Ray Cameron (19 April 1938 – 27 December 1993), né Thomas Cameron McIntyre, was a writer on The Kenny Everett Television Show, and his Hungarian mother, Kati, was a dancer. McIntyre has some Eastern European Jewish heritage on his mother's side.[7][8] His parents divorced when he was seven; both his parents remarried and went on to have other children with their new spouses. Ray Cameron relocated to Los Angeles, where he died of a heart attack in 1993, aged 55.
McIntyre went to Arnold House Prep School and then attended Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood for three years before transferring to local state school Woodhouse College for financial reasons.[9] McIntyre later attended Edinburgh University for one year before dropping out to pursue a career in script writing.[10] He has said that he cannot remember whether it was biology or chemistry that he studied while there.[6][10]
McIntyre has appeared three times on BBC One's Live at the Apollo and also on the Royal Variety Performance, in 2006, 2008 and 2010. While performing on stage in Wolverhampton in 2008, as he was running back onto stage for his encore, McIntyre tripped, fell over and dislocated his shoulder. Many of the audience believed this to be part of his act and started to laugh; only after his manager came on stage to assist did they realise it was real.[11]
McIntyre's routine on We Are Most Amused, staged at the New Wimbledon Theatre on 12 November 2008 in aid of The Prince's Trust was televised. This comedy gala celebrated the 60th birthday of Prince Charles, and was performed in the presence of the Prince of Wales and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall.[citation needed]
Among McIntyre's many comedy panel show appearances are Chris Moyles' Quiz Night, Mock the Week, 8 out of 10 Cats, Have I Got News for You, The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, Would I Lie To You?, and The Apprentice: You're Fired!. On 13 February 2009, he was a guest on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. On 21 February 2009, McIntyre appeared live as a guest judge alongside head judge Anton du Beke and fellow guest Emma Bunton in the first round of Let's Dance for Comic Relief. He appeared on the show again in the final on 14 March.
In 2009, McIntyre performed for an estimated total of 500,000 people on his first tour of the United Kingdom that included a record-breaking six nights at Wembley Arena and four at The O2 Arena. His second DVD, Hello Wembley, was another hit. 58 dates have been announced for his second tour in the autumn of 2012, at arenas in ten UK cities as well as Dublin.[5]
From 6 June 2009, McIntyre began hosting Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, aired on Saturday nights on BBC One. On 5 July 2009, McIntyre appeared on the BBC show Top Gear as the "star in a reasonably priced car", driving around the Top Gear test track in one minute and 48.7 seconds. During his lap of the track he almost rolled the car while going around the final corner.
In December 2009, McIntyre cancelled a stand-up show at short notice after discovering that he would be performing to debt collectors. He had revealed only weeks earlier how he had struggled with substantial debt only a few years before breaking through in to the mainstream. McIntyre stated that he would have gone against his principles by performing the show.[12]
On 31 March 2010, McIntyre took part in Channel 4's Comedy Gala, a benefit show held in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital, filmed live at London's O2 Arena. Also in 2010 he appeared on the year's edition of The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, partnered with Alan Carr. The other participants were Richard Ayoade, Noel Fielding, Jonathan Ross and Ruth Jones.
On 14 December 2010, it was announced that McIntyre would join the Britain's Got Talent judges' panel in 2011, alongside David Hasselhoff and Amanda Holden.[13]
On 18 March 2011 McIntyre was among the hosts of the BBC's Red Nose Day.
In Sept 2011 McIntyre quit his role as judge on Britain's Got Talent to focus on his 2012 Stand-up tour[14]
On Christmas Day 2011 McIntyre hosted a Christmas Special of his show, ‘’Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow’’, that featured Jack Dee, Sean Lock, Rhod Gilbert, David Mitchell, James Corden, Miranda Hart, Rob Brydon and had music from Pixie Lott and Kylie Minogue. The show was watched by 8.1 million viewers.[15]
McIntyre's radio appearances have included:
McIntyre lives in Hampstead, London[17] with his aromatherapist wife Kitty, a daughter of actor Simon Ward. The couple married in 2003 and have two sons, Oscar and Lucas.
He is a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur.[18]
Year | Category | Award | Result |
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2003 | Edinburgh Festival: Perrier Award | Best Newcomer | Nominated |
2007 | Chortle Awards | Best Headliner | Nominated |
2008 | Chortle Awards | Best Headliner | Won |
British Comedy Awards | Best Live Stand-up | Nominated | |
2009 | British Comedy Awards | Best Comedy Entertainment Personality | Nominated |
British Comedy Award | Best Stand-Up | Won | |
GQ Award | Best Comedian | Won | |
2010 | National Television Awards | Best Entertainment Presenter | Nominated |
Chortle Awards | Best Tour | Won | |
RTS Awards | Best Entertainment Presenter | Nominated | |
BAFTA Awards | Entertainment Performance | Nominated | |
British Comedy Award | Best Male TV Comic | Won | |
2012 | National Television Awards | Best Entertainment Show (Michael Mcintyre's Comedy Roadshow) | Won |
Title | Released | Notes |
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Live & Laughing | 17 November 2008 | Live at London's HMV Hammersmith Apollo |
Live 2009: Hello Wembley! | 16 November 2009 | Live at London's Wembley Arena |
Live 2012 | 12 November 2012 | Not yet available |
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Michael McIntyre |
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Persondata | |
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Name | Macintyre, Michael |
Alternative names | Mike |
Short description | English comedian |
Date of birth | 21 February 1976 |
Place of birth | Merton, London, England |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
James Corden | |
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Born | James Kimberley Corden (1978-08-22) 22 August 1978 (age 33) Hillingdon, London, UK |
Occupation | Actor, television writer and presenter, comedian, singer, songwriter |
Years active | 1996–present |
Television | Fat Friends Gavin & Stacey Horne and Corden James Corden's World Cup Live A League of Their Own |
Partner | Julia Carey (2010–present) |
Children | Son |
James Kimberley Corden[1] (born 22 August 1978)[2] is an English actor, television writer, producer and presenter. He is co-creator and star of BBC comedy shows Gavin & Stacey and Horne & Corden, and acted in the 2009 film Lesbian Vampire Killers. He attracted attention for his performance in the lead role in the award-winning comedy play One Man, Two Guvnors, which transferred from the National Theater to the West End and then to Broadway.
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Corden was born to Malcolm and Margaret Corden[3] in Hillingdon, Greater London,[1] and grew up in Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire.[4] He has an older sister, Andrea Henry,[3] and a younger sister, Ruth Corden.[5]
Corden obtained his first part at eighteen years old[6] in the musical Martin Guerre.[7] He then starred in the British television series Fat Friends as Jamie Rymer, and played Gareth Jones in the series Boyz Unlimited. His television work includes a credited minor role as Razor #1 in Renford Rejects (Series 1 Episode 2, 1998), a role playing a bookish student in Teachers (Series 1, 2000) and he also made a guest appearance in Little Britain. Corden's film credits include Whatever Happened to Harold Smith? (1999) and Mike Leigh's All or Nothing (2002).
In 1998, Corden appeared in an advertising campaign for Tango, where his every word is being copied by overweight balding ginger men using megaphones that the company were promoting as a free gift. The advert was subsequently banned after complaints of a trend in school children bullying others in the same manner as the advert.[8]
Corden played a small part in Channel 4/T4's Hollyoaks. He played a caretaker of the local college briefly around 2001–02. In an August 2008 interview with Esquire Magazine, he commented on his disdain for the programme and members of the cast.[9]
Corden played the role of Timms in the original London stage production of Alan Bennett's play The History Boys, as well as in the Broadway, Sydney, Wellington and Hong Kong productions and radio and film versions of the play.[10][11][12] Corden stars in the BBC Three comedy Gavin & Stacey that he co-wrote with his Fat Friends co-star Ruth Jones.
Corden guest hosted Big Brother's Big Mouth with his Gavin & Stacey co-star Mathew Horne in August 2007. He appears in the film of Toby Young's autobiography How to Lose Friends & Alienate People and series two of Gavin & Stacey.
In February 2008 he shot a BBC pilot, Hey, Hey, We're The Monks. He collaborated with Horne on a 2009 sketch show named Horne & Corden, described by the BBC as a "traditional comedy entertainment show in the style of Morecambe and Wise."[13] The show ran for only one series and was poorly received by the critics, with Corden later admitting "the absolute truth is I wasn't good enough."[14]
In February 2009, he co-presented the Brit Awards with Mathew Horne and Kylie Minogue.[15] On 13 March 2009, he appeared in a sketch for Comic Relief giving the England football team a motivational talk. He later went on to present a section with Mathew Horne showing their best bits of comedy from the last two years along with highlights from the night.
In 2009, he had a minor role in The Boat That Rocked as Bernard, a deejay for Radio Sunshine. This clip was taken out of the film for the US release (retitled Pirate Radio), and is now in the deleted scenes feature on the DVD.
In March 2010, Corden began hosting the Sky1 comedy/sports panel show A League of Their Own alongside team captains Andrew Flintoff and Jamie Redknapp. In March 2010, he presented Sport Relief 2010 alongside Davina McCall and others and contributed a "sequel" to the 2009 England football team sketch this time giving a motivational talk to various sport stars including Jenson Button and David Beckham.[16]
In March 2010, Corden took part in Channel 4's Comedy Gala, a benefit show held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, filmed live at the O2 Arena in London on 30 March. On 5 June 2010, he performed his England World Cup single with Dizzee Rascal on the finale of Britain's Got Talent. All of the proceeds from the single will be going to Great Ormond Street Hospital.[citation needed]
In June 2010, Corden played Craig Owens in the Doctor Who episode "The Lodger", in which the Doctor moved in with him. Corden returned as Owens in "Closing Time" in the sixth series. In December 2010, This Is JLS, an hour long Christmas special featuring the boyband and The X Factor runners up, was aired on ITV1, with Corden writing and producing some of the sketches featured in the special.
In February 2011, Corden again presented the 2011 BRIT Awards. In March, Corden reprised his role as Smithy in the Smithy Red Nose Day sketch. The sketch included appearances by Gordon Brown, JLS, Paul McCartney and Justin Bieber. It received positive reviews from critics and was highly regarded as the best sketch of the night.[17]
Starting in June 2011, Corden played the lead role in the comedy play One Man, Two Guvnors. The show won Best Play at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards for 2011.[18] It transferred from the National Theater to the West End, and then to Broadway, with Corden continuing to play the lead.
In February 2012, Corden once again hosted the BRIT Awards, making his times as host three times in total. There was controversy over the fact that he had to cut Adele's award acceptance speech short for time limit reasons. She proceeded to "flip-off" the audience although she later said it was directed to the "suits". [19]
Corden was in a relationship with actress Sheridan Smith until June 2009.[20]
He is engaged to former TV producer Julia Carey, introduced to him by former housemate Dominic Cooper.[21] The couple announced in late September 2010 that they were expecting their first child together.[21] They became engaged on Christmas Day 2010,[22] and their son, Max, was born on 22 March 2011.[23][24]
He is such a supporter of West Ham United F.C. that he wants to be the mascot.[25]
Corden was nominated for the 2000 RTS Award for Network Newcomer – On Screen for his work on Fat Friends.[26]
Corden won Best Male Comedy Performer and Gavin & Stacey won Best New British Television Comedy at the 2007 British Comedy Awards.[27]
At the 2008 Television BAFTAs, Corden won the BAFTA for Best Comedy Performance.Gavin & Stacey won the Sky+ Audience Award for Programme of the Year, the only award at the ceremony voted for by the public, beating the likes of The Apprentice and Britain's Got Talent.[28]
Gavin & Stacey won the award for Most Popular Comedy Programme at the National Television Awards 2010, beating other nominees Benidorm and Harry Hill's TV Burp.[29]
In May 2012 Corden was nominated for the prestigious Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play for his role in One Man, Two Guvnors.[30]
Year | Title | Role | Location |
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1996 | Martin Guerre | Prince Edward Theatre, West End | |
2004 | The History Boys | Timms | Lyttelton Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London |
2006 | Timms | Lyric Theatre, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Hong Kong | |
Timms | St James, Wellington | ||
Timms | Sydney Theatre, Sydney | ||
2007 | Timms | Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway | |
2007 | A Respectable Wedding | Friend | Young Vic, South Bank, London |
2011 | One Man, Two Guvnors | Francis Henshall | Lyttelton Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London |
Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
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1997 | Twenty Four Seven | Carl ‘Tonka’ Marsh | |
1999 | Whatever Happened to Harold Smith? | Walter | |
2002 | All or Nothing | Rory | |
Heartlands | Shady | ||
Cruise of the Gods | Russell | ||
2005 | Pierrepoint | Kirky | |
2006 | Heroes and Villains | Sam | |
The History Boys | Timms | ||
Starter for 10 | Tone | ||
2008 | How to Lose Friends & Alienate People | Post Modern Review Staff #2 | |
2009 | Lesbian Vampire Killers | Fletch | |
Telstar | Clem Cattini | ||
The Boat That Rocked | Bernard | Deleted scenes only | |
Planet 51 | Soldier Vernkot | ||
2010 | Gulliver's Travels | Jinks | |
Animals United | Billy the Meerkat | ||
2011 | The Three Musketeers | Planchet |
Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
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1996–1998 | Out of Tune[disambiguation needed ] | ||
1998 | Renford Rejects | Razor #1 | |
1999 | Boyz Unlimited | Gareth | |
2000 | Shut Down Non Tango Drinkers (Tango advert) | James Rayner | |
2000–2005 | Fat Friends | Jamie Rymer | Four series |
2001/2002 | Hollyoaks | Wayne | One episode |
2001 | Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story | Giant's son | |
2001, 2003 | Teachers | Jeremy | Two series |
2003 | Weight Watchers Extreme | Mike Neasham | One episode |
2004 | Little Britain | Dewi Thomas (Daffyd's brother) | One episode |
2004 | Dalziel and Pascoe | Ben Forsythe | One episode |
2007–2010 | Gavin & Stacey | Smithy | Co-Writer |
2007, 2008 | 8 Out of 10 Cats | Himself | Four episodes |
2007, 2008 | Big Brother's Big Mouth | Himself | |
30 October 2008 | Never Mind the Buzzcocks | Himself | Guest team captain, Series 22, Episode 6 Guest host, Series 23, Episode 1 |
6 July 2008 | Top Gear | Himself | |
28 December 2008 | The Big Fat Quiz of the Year | Himself | On a team with Sean Lock |
2009 | Horne & Corden | Various characters | |
2009 | Red Nose Day 2009 – Comic Relief | Himself | Co-host |
2009, 2010 | Chris Moyles' Quiz Night | Himself | |
25 December 2009 | The Gruffalo | Mouse (voiceover) | BBC Christmas Special |
2010 | A League of Their Own | Himself | Host |
2010 | Red Nose Day 2010 – Sport Relief | Smithy | Sketch |
19 March 2010 | Sport Relief | Himself | Co-host |
5 June 2010 | Britain's Got Talent | Himself | Singing with Dizzee Rascal |
12 June 2010 – 11 July 2010 | James Corden's World Cup Live | Himself | Host |
12 June 2010, 2011[31] | Doctor Who | Craig Owens | Series 5, Episode 11: "The Lodger"; Series 6, Episode 12: "Closing Time" |
2 September 2010 | The King is Dead | Himself | Series 1, Episode 1: "The President of the USA" |
2011 | Red Nose Day 2011 – Comic Relief | Smithy | Sketch |
2011 | Little Charley Bear | Narrator | CBeebies |
29 October 2011 | Piers Morgan's Life Stories | Himself | |
25 December 2011[32] | The Gruffalo's Child | Mouse | |
2012 | Stella (UK TV series) | Steven |
|
Persondata | |
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Name | Corden, James |
Alternative names | |
Short description | English actor |
Date of birth | 23 August 1978 |
Place of birth | London, England |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may only interest a specific audience. Please help relocate any relevant information, and remove excessive detail that may be against Wikipedia inclusion policy. (December 2011) |
Andy Murray at the 2011 Japan Open |
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Country | Great Britain |
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Residence | London, England |
Born | (1987-05-15) 15 May 1987 (age 25) Glasgow, Scotland[1][2] |
Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) |
Weight | 84 kg (190 lb; 13.2 st) |
Turned pro | 2004 |
Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $20,376,752[3] |
Official web site | www.andymurray.com |
Singles | |
Career record | 345–114 (75%) |
Career titles | 22 |
Highest ranking | No. 2 (17 August 2009) |
Current ranking | No. 4 (28 May 2012) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | F (2010, 2011) |
French Open | SF (2011) |
Wimbledon | SF (2009, 2010, 2011) |
US Open | F (2008) |
Other tournaments | |
Tour Finals | SF (2008, 2010) |
Olympic Games | 1R (2008) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 45–53 |
Career titles | 2 |
Highest ranking | No. 51 (17 October 2011) |
Current ranking | No. 70 (28 May 2012) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 1R (2006) |
French Open | 2R (2006) |
Wimbledon | 1R (2005) |
US Open | 2R (2008) |
Other Doubles tournaments | |
Olympic Games | 2R (2008) |
Last updated on: 28 May 2012. |
Andrew "Andy" Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a Scottish professional tennis player, ranked No. 4 in the world,[3] and was ranked No. 2 from 17 to 31 August 2009.[4] Murray achieved a top-10 ranking by the Association of Tennis Professionals for the first time on 16 April 2007. He has been runner-up in three Grand Slam finals: the 2008 US Open, the 2010 Australian Open and the 2011 Australian Open, losing the first two to Roger Federer and the third to Novak Djokovic. In 2011, Murray became only the seventh player in the Open Era to reach the semi-finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments in one year.[5]
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Andy Murray was born to Will and Judy in Glasgow, Scotland.[1][2] His maternal grandfather, Roy Erskine, was a professional footballer who played reserve team matches for Hibernian and in the Scottish Football League for Stirling Albion and Cowdenbeath.[6][7][8][9] Murray's brother, Jamie, is also a professional tennis player, playing on the doubles circuit.[10] Following the separation of his parents when he was nine years old, Andy and Jamie lived with their father.[11] Murray later attended Dunblane High School.[12][13] Murray is in a five-year relationship with Kim Sears, who is regularly seen attending his matches. The relationship ended briefly in 2009 before they reconciled a short time later in 2010.[14][15][16]
At 15, Murray was asked to train with Rangers Football Club at their School of Excellence, but declined, opting to focus on his tennis career instead.[17] Murray's tennis idol is Andre Agassi.[18]
Murray was born with a bipartite patella, where the kneecap remains as two separate bones instead of fusing together in early childhood.[19] He was diagnosed at the age of 16 and had to stop playing tennis for six months. Murray is seen frequently to hold his knee due to the pain caused by the condition and has pulled out of events because of it,[20] but manages it through a number of different approaches.[21]
Murray attended Dunblane Primary School, and was present during the 1996 Dunblane school massacre.[22] Thomas Hamilton killed 17 people before turning one of his four guns on himself. Murray took cover in a classroom.[23] Murray says he was too young to understand what was happening and is reluctant to talk about it in interviews, but in his autobiography Hitting Back he says that he attended a youth group run by Hamilton, and that his mother gave Hamilton lifts in her car.[24]
Murray began playing tennis at age 5.[25] Leon Smith, Murray's tennis coach from 11 to 17,[26] said he had never seen a five-year-old like Murray, describing him as "unbelievably competitive". Murray attributes his abilities to the motivation gained from losing to his older brother Jamie. He first beat Jamie in an under-12s final in Solihull, afterwards teasing Jamie until his brother hit him hard enough to lose a nail on his left hand.[27] At the age of 12, Murray won his age group at the Orange Bowl, a prestigious event for junior players.[28] He briefly played football before reverting to tennis.[29] When Murray was 15 years old he decided to move to Barcelona, Spain. There he studied at the Schiller International School and trained on the clay courts of the Sánchez-Casal Academy. Murray described this time as "a big sacrifice".[13] While in Spain, he trained with Emilio Sánchez, formerly the world no. 1 doubles player.[13]
In July 2003, Murray started out on the Challenger and Futures circuit. In his first tournament, he reached the quarterfinals of the Manchester challenger. In his next tournament, Murray lost on clay in the first round to future world top-tenner Fernando Verdasco. In September, Murray won his first senior title by taking the Glasgow Futures event. He also reached the semifinals of the Edinburgh Futures event.[citation needed] In July 2004 Murray played a Futures event in Nottingham, where he lost to future Grand Slam finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the second round. Murray then went on to win events in Xàtiva and Rome.
In September 2004, he won the Junior US Open by beating Sergiy Stakhovsky, now a top-100 player. He was selected for the Davis Cup match against Austria later that month;[30] however, he was not selected to play. Later that year, he won BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.[31]
Murray began 2005 ranked 407 in the world.[32] In March, he became the youngest Briton ever to play in the Davis Cup,[33] as he helped Britain win the tie with a crucial doubles win. Following the tie, Murray turned professional in April,[34] as he played his first ATP tournament. Murray was given a wild card to a clay-court tournament in Barcelona, the Open SEAT, where he lost in three sets to Jan Hernych.[35] Murray then reached the semifinals of the boys' French Open, which was his first junior tournament since the US Open.[36] In the semi finals Murray lost in straight sets to Marin Čilić,[37] after he had defeated Juan Martín del Potro in the quarter-finals.[38]
Given a wild card to Queen's,[39] Murray progressed past Santiago Ventura in straight sets for his first ATP win.[citation needed] He followed this up with another straight-sets win against Taylor Dent. In the last 16, he played former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson, where he lost the match in three sets. After losing the opener on a tie-break, Murray won the second on a tie-break, but the onset of cramp and an ankle injury sealed the match 6–7, 7–6, 5–7 in Johansson's favour.[40][41] Following his performance at Queen's, Murray received a wild card for Wimbledon.[42] Ranked 312, he defeated George Bastl and 14th seed Radek Štěpánek in the opening two rounds in straight sets, thereby becoming the first Scot in the open era to reach the third round of the men's singles tournament at Wimbledon.[43] In the third round, Murray played 2002 Wimbledon finalist David Nalbandian[44] and lost 7–6, 6–1, 0–6, 4–6, 1–6.
Following Wimbledon, Murray played in Newport at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, where he lost in the second round. He had a wild card for the US Open, as he was the Junior champion. In the run-up to the tournament, Murray won Challengers on the hard courts of Aptos, which sent him into the top 200, and Binghamton, New York. He also experienced his first Masters event at Cincinnati, where he beat Dent again in straight sets, before losing in three sets to world no. 4 Marat Safin. Murray played Andrei Pavel in the opening round of the US Open. Murray recovered from being down two sets to one to win his first five-set match,[45] despite being sick on court.[46] He lost in the second round to Arnaud Clément in another five set contest.[47] Murray was again selected for the Davis Cup match against Switzerland. He was picked for the opening singles rubbers, losing in straight sets to Stanislas Wawrinka.[48] Murray then made his first ATP final at the Thailand Open. In the final, he faced world no. 1 Roger Federer, losing in straight sets. On 3 October, Murray achieved a top-100 ranking for the first time.[49] In his last tournament of the year, an ATP event in Basel Murray faced British no. 1 Tim Henman in the opening round.[50] Murray defeated him in three sets, before doing the same to Tomáš Berdych. He then suffered a third-round loss to Fernando González. He completed the year ranked 64 and was named the 2005 BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year.[51]
2006 saw Murray compete on the full circuit for the first time and split with his coach Mark Petchey[52] and team up with Brad Gilbert.[53]
Getting his season under way at the Adelaide International, Murray won his opening match of 2006 against Paolo Lorenzi in three sets, before bowing out to Tomáš Berdych. Murray's season then moved to Auckland, where he beat Kenneth Carlsen. Murray then lost three matches in a row including a first round matche at the Australian Open. Murray stopped the run as he beat Mardy Fish in straight sets when the tour came to San Jose, California; going on to win his first ATP title, the SAP Open, defeating world no. 11 Lleyton Hewitt in the final.[54] The run to the final included his first win over a top-ten player, Andy Roddick,[55] the world no. 3, to reach his second ATP final, which he won. Murray backed this up with a quarterfinal appearance in Memphis, falling to Söderling. Murray won just three times between the end of February and the middle of June, the run included a first round defeat to Gael Monfils at the French Open, in five sets.[56] After the French Open, where Murray was injured again, he revealed that his bones hadn't fully grown, causing him to suffer from cramps and back problems.[57]
At the Nottingham Open, Murray recorded consecutive wins for the first time since Memphis, with wins over Dmitry Tursunov and Max Mirnyi, before bowing out to Andreas Seppi in the quarterfinals. He progressed to the fourth round at Wimbledon, beating Nicolás Massú, Julien Benneteau, and Roddick, before succumbing to Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis. Murray reached the semifinals of the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, defeating Ricardo Mello, Sam Querrey, and Robert Kendrick, with his first main tour whitewash (also known as a double bagel). He exited in the semifinals to Justin Gimelstob. Murray then won a Davis Cup rubber against Andy Ram, coming back from two sets down, but lost the doubles alongside Jamie Delgado, after being 2 sets to 1 up. The tie was over before Murray could play the deciding rubber. His good form continued as the tour moved to the hard courts of the USA, where he recorded a runner-up position at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic losing to Arnaud Clément in the final. Murray then reached his first Masters Series semifinal in Toronto at the Rogers Cup, beating David Ferrer, Tim Henman, Carlos Moyá, and Jarkko Nieminen along the way, before exiting to Richard Gasquet in straight sets. At the ATP Masters Series event in Cincinnati, Murray defeated Henman, before becoming only one of two players, alongside Rafael Nadal, to defeat Roger Federer in 2006. This was followed by a win over Robbie Ginepri and a loss to Andy Roddick. He also reached the fourth round of the US Open losing in four sets to Davydenko, including a whitewash in the final set.[citation needed] In the Davis Cup, Murray won both his singles rubbers, but lost the doubles, as Britain won the tie. As the tour progressed to Asia, he lost to Henman for the first time in straight sets in Bangkok. In the final two Masters events in Madrid and Paris, Murray exited both tournaments at the last-16 stage ending his season, with losses to Novak Djoković and Dominik Hrbatý.
In November Murray split with his coach Brad Gilbert[58] and added a team of experts along with Miles Maclagan, his main coach.[59] Ahead of the first event of the season Murray signed a sponsorship deal with Highland Spring worth £1m. It was reportedly the biggest shirt-sponsorship deal in tennis.[60] The season started well for Murray as he reached the final of the Qatar Open. He defeated Filippo Volandri, Christophe Rochus, Max Mirnyi and Nikolay Davydenko, before falling to Ivan Ljubičić in straight sets. Murray reached the fourth round of the Australian Open.[61] After defeating Alberto Martín for the loss of one game, then beating Fernando Verdasco and Juan Ignacio Chela in straight sets, in the round of 16 Murray lost a five-set match against world No. 2 Rafael Nadal, 7–6, 4–6, 6–4, 3–6, 1–6.[62] He then successfully defended his San Jose title, defeating Kevin Kim, Kristian Pless, Hyung-Taik Lee, Andy Roddick and Ivo Karlović to retain the tournament.[63]
Murray then made the semi-finals of his next three tournaments. Making the semis in Memphis, he defeated Frank Dancevic, Pless and Stefan Koubek before a reverse to Roddick. In Indian Wells, Murray won against Wesley Moodie, Nicolas Mahut, Nikolay Davydenko and Tommy Haas before falling to Novak Djoković. At Miami, Murray was victorious against Paul Goldstein, Robert Kendrick, Paul-Henri Mathieu and Roddick, before going down to Djokovic for the second tournament running.
Before the clay season Murray defeated Raemon Sluiter in the Davis Cup to help Britain win the tie. In his first tournament in Rome, Murray lost in the first round to Gilles Simon in three sets. In Hamburg, Murray played Volandri first up. In the first set, Murray was 5–1 when he hit a forehand from the back of the court and snapped the tendons in his wrist.[64]
Murray missed a large part of the season including the French Open and Wimbledon.[65] He returned at the Rogers Cup in Canada. In his first match he defeated Robby Ginepri in straight sets[66] before bowing out to Fabio Fognini. At the Cincinnati Masters Murray drew Marcos Baghdatis in the first round and won only three games. At the US Open Murray beat Pablo Cuevas in straight sets before edging out Jonas Björkman in a five-setter. Murray lost in the third round to Lee in four sets.
Murray played in Great Britain's winning Davis Cup tie against Croatia, beating Marin Čilić in five sets. Murray hit form, as he then reached the final at the Metz International after knocking out Janko Tipsarević, Michaël Llodra, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Guillermo Cañas. He lost to Tommy Robredo in the final, despite winning the first set 6–0. Murray had early exits in Moscow and Madrid; falling to Tipsarević after winning against Evgeny Korolev in Moscow and to Nadal after defeating Radek Štěpánek and Chela in Madrid.
Murray improved as he won his third ATP title at the St. Petersburg Open, beating Mirnyi, Lukáš Dlouhý, Dmitry Tursunov, Mikhail Youzhny and Fernando Verdasco to claim the title. In his final tournament in Paris, Murray went out in the quarter-finals. He beat Jarkko Nieminen and Fabrice Santoro before falling to Richard Gasquet. With that result he finished at No. 11 in the world, just missing out on a place at the Masters Cup.
Murray re-entered the top-ten rankings early in 2008, winning the Qatar ExxonMobil Open with wins over Olivier Rochus, Rainer Schüttler, Thomas Johansson, Nikolay Davydenko and Stanislas Wawrinka for the title. He was the ninth seed at the Australian Open but was defeated by eventual runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round.[67]
Murray took his second title of the year at the Open 13 after beating Jesse Huta Galung, Wawrinka, Nicolas Mahut, Paul-Henri Mathieu and Marin Čilić. But Murray exited to Robin Haase in straight sets in Rotterdam. In Dubai Murray defeated Roger Federer in three sets before doing the same to Fernando Verdasco and falling short against Davydenko. At Indian Wells Murray defeated Jürgen Melzer and Ivo Karlović in three sets and crashed out to Tommy Haas, before a first-match exit to Mario Ančić in Miami.
On the clay courts in Monte Carlo Murray defeated Feliciano López and Filippo Volandri before winning just four games against Novak Djoković. Ančić then handed Murray another first-match defeat in Barcelona. In Rome Murray first played Juan Martín del Potro in an ill-tempered three-set match. Murray won his first match in Rome[68] when Del Potro retired with an injury. Murray was warned for bad language and there was disagreement between the two players where Murray claimed that Del Potro insulted his mother, who was in the crowd, and deliberately aimed a ball at his head.[69][70] In the next round Murray lost in straight sets to Wawrinka. In his last tournament before the French Open Murray participated in Hamburg. He defeated Dmitry Tursunov and Gilles Simon before a defeat against Rafael Nadal. At Roland Garros he overcame local boy Jonathan Eysseric in five sets and clay-courter José Acasuso, where he lost just four games. He ended the tournament after a defeat by Nicolás Almagro in four sets in the third round.
At Queen's Murray played just two games of his opening match before Sébastien Grosjean withdrew. Against Ernests Gulbis Murray slipped on the damp grass and caused a sprain to his thumb.[71] He won the match in 3 but withdrew ahead of his quarter-final against Andy Roddick.[72] Any thought that he would pull out of Wimbledon was unfounded as he made the start line to reach the quarter-finals for the first time. Murray defeated Fabrice Santoro, Xavier Malisse in three sets and Tommy Haas in 4, before the one of the matches of the tournament. Murray found himself two sets down to Richard Gasquet who was serving for the match. Murray broke and took the set to a tie-break, before the shot of the tournament on set point. Murray hit a backhand winner from way off the court, when he was almost in the stands.[73] Murray progressed through the fourth set before an early break in the 5th. Gasquet failed to break back in the next game and made a complaint about the light. But Murray completed a 5–7, 3–6, 7–6, 6–2, 6–4 win.[74] In the next round Murray was defeated by world No. 2 Nadal in straight sets.
In his first tournament after Wimbledon, the Rogers Cup, Murray defeated Johansson, Wawrinka and Djokovic before losing to Nadal in the semi-finals. The Nadal loss was Murray's last defeat in ATP events for three months. In Cincinnati Murray went one better than in Canada as he reached his first ATP Masters Series final. He beat Sam Querrey, Tursunov, Carlos Moyá and Karlovic to make the final. Murray showed no signs of nerves as on debut he won his first Masters Shield, defeating Djokovic in two tie-breakers. At the Olympics, which is ITF organised, Murray was dumped out in round one by Yen-Hsun Lu,[75] citing a lack of professionalism on his part.[76]
Murray then went to New York to participate in the US Open. He became the first Briton since Greg Rusedski in 1997 to reach a Grand Slam final. Murray defeated Sergio Roitman, Michaël Llodra and won against Melzer after being two sets down.[77] He then beat Wawrinka to set up a match with Del Potro;[78] he overcame Nadal in the semi-finals after a four-set battle, beating him for the first time, in a rain-affected match that lasted for two days.[79] In the final he lost in straight sets to Roger Federer.[80][81]
Murray beat Alexander Peya and Jürgen Melzer in the Davis Cup tie against Austria, but it was in vain as Great Britain lost the deciding rubber. He returned to ATP tournaments in Madrid, where he won his second consecutive Masters shield. He defeated Simone Bolelli, Čilić (for the first time in 2008) and Gaël Monfils before avenging his US Open final loss against Federer in three sets, and taking the title against Simon. Murray then made it three ATP tournament wins on the bounce with his 5th title of the year at the St Petersburg Open, where Murray beat Viktor Troicki, Gulbis, Janko Tipsarević, without dropping a set, before thrashing Verdasco for the loss of just three games in the semi-final and Andrey Golubev for the loss of two games in the final. He thus became the first British player to win two Master tournaments and the first Briton to win five tournaments in a year.[82] Heading into the final Masters event of the season, Murray was on course for a record third consecutive Masters shield.[83] Murray defeated Sam Querrey and Verdasco, before David Nalbandian ended Murray's run, of 14 straight wins, when he beat him in straight sets. This was Murray's first defeat on the ATP tour in three months, since Nadal beat him in Canada.[84]
Now at No. 4 in the world, Murray qualified for the first time for the Masters Cup. He beat Roddick in three sets, before the American withdrew from the competition. This was followed by a win over Simon to qualify for the semi-finals.[85] In his final group match against Federer, Murray defeated him in three sets.[86][87] In the semi-final Murray faced Davydenko, but after leaving it all on the court against Federer, Murray succumbed to the Russian in straight sets.[88]
Murray ended 2008 ranked fourth in the world.
Murray began 2009 by beating Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to win the exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi. He followed this with a successful defence of his title at the Qatar Open in Doha, defeating Andy Roddick in straight sets to win the final.[89] At the Australian Open, Murray made it to the fourth round, losing to Fernando Verdasco in the fourth round.[90] After the loss to Verdasco, Murray was delayed from going home, as he was found to be suffering from a virus.
Murray got back to winnning ways quickly though as he won his eleventh career title in Rotterdam. In the final, Murray faced the world no. 1, Nadal, defeating him in the third set.[91] However, an injury, sustained in the semifinal forced his withdrawal from the Marseille Open, which he had won in 2008.[92] Returning from injury, Murray went to Dubai and withdrew before the quarterfinals with a re-occurrence of the virus that had affected him at the Australian Open.[93] The virus caused Murray to miss a Davis Cup tie in Glasgow. Returning from the virus, Murray made it to the final at Indian Wells. Murray defeated Federer in the semifinal but lost the final against Nadal, winning just three games in windy conditions.[94] However a week later and Murray made another final in Miami and defeated Novak Djokovic for another masters title.
Murray got his clay season underway at the Monte Carlo Masters. With a series of impressive performances, Murray made it to the semifinals losing in straight sets to Nadal. Murray then moved to the Rome Masters, where he lost in the second round, after a first-round bye, to Juan Mónaco in three sets. Despite an early exit of the Rome Masters Murray achieved the highest ever ranking of a British male in the open era when he became world no. 3 on 11 May 2009.[95] Murray celebrated this achievement by trying to defend his Madrid Masters title, which had switched surfaces from hard to clay. He reached the quarterfinals, after beating Simone Bolelli and Robredo in straight sets, before losing to Del Potro. Murray reached the quarterfinals of the 2009 French Open, but was defeated by Fernando González in four sets.
Murray won at Queen's, without dropping a set, becoming the first British winner of the tournament since 1938. In the final Murray defeated American James Blake. This was Murray's first tournament win on grass and his first ATP title in Britain.[96] Murray was initially seeded third at Wimbledon, but after the withdrawal of defending champion Nadal, Murray became the second-highest seeded player, after Federer and highest-ever seeded Briton in a senior event at Wimbledon.[97] Rain meant that Murray's fourth-round match against Stanislas Wawrinka was the first match to be played entirely under Wimbledon's retractable roof, also enabling it to be the latest finishing match ever at Wimbledon. Murray's win stretched to five sets and 3 hours 56 minutes, resulting in a 22:38 finish that was approximately an hour after play is usually concluded.[98] However Murray lost a tight semifinal to Andy Roddick, achieving his best result in the tournament to date.
Murray returned to action in Montreal, defeating del Potro in three sets to take the title.[99] After this victory, he overtook Nadal in the rankings and held the number two position until the start of the US Open.[100] Murray followed the Masters win playing at the Cincinnati Masters, where Federer beat him for the first time since the US Open in straight sets. At the US Open, Murray was hampered by a wrist injury and suffered a straight-sets loss to Čilić.[101] Murray competed in the Davis Cup tie in Liverpool against Poland. Murray won both his singles matches, but lost the doubles as Britain lost the tie and was relegated to the next group. During the weekend, Murray damaged his wrist further and was forced to miss six weeks of the tour, and with it dropped to no. 4 in the world.[102]
Murray returned to the tour in Valencia, where he won his sixth and final tournament of the year.[103] In the final Masters event of 2009, in Paris, Murray beat James Blake in three sets, before losing to Štěpánek in three. At the World Tour Finals in London, Murray started by beating del Potro in three sets, before losing a three-set match to Federer. He won his next match against Verdasco, but because Murray, Federer, and del Potro all ended up on equal wins and sets, it came down to game percentage, and Murray lost out by a game,[104] bringing an end to his 2009 season.
Murray and Laura Robson represented Britain at the Hopman Cup. The pair progressed to the final, where they were beaten by Spain.[105] At the Australian Open Murray progressed through his opening few matches in straight sets to set up a quarterfinal clash with the world no. 2 Rafael Nadal. Murray led by two sets and a break before the Spaniard had to retire with a torn quadriceps. Murray became the first British man to reach more than one Grand Slam final in 72 years when he defeated Marin Cilic.[106] Murray lost the final to world no. 1 Roger Federer in straight sets.[107]
At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Murray reached the quarterfinals. He was defeated by Robin Söderling in straight sets. Murray next played at the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open, but lost his first match of the tournament, afterwards he said that his mind hadn't been fully on tennis.[108][109]
Switching attention to clay, Murray requested a wild card for Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. He suffered another first match loss, this time to Philipp Kohlschreiber. He also entered the doubles competition with Ross Hutchins and defeated world no. 10 doubles team Cermak and Meritmak, before losing to the Bryan Brothers on a champions tie-breaker. Murray then went on to reach the third round in the Rome Masters 1000, where he lost to David Ferrer in straight sets. At the Madrid Masters, he reached the quarterfinals, where he subsequently lost to Ferrer again in a closely fought battle. Murray completed his preparations for the second Grand Slam of the year by defeating Fish in an exhibition match 11–9 in a champions tie-breaker.[110] At the French Open, Murray was drawn in the first round against Richard Gasquet. Murray battled back from two sets down to win in the final set.[111] In the third round, Murray lost a set 0–6 against Marcos Baghdatis, something he had not done since the French Open quarterfinals the previous year.[112] Murray lost in straight sets to Tomáš Berdych in the fourth round and credited his opponent for outplaying him.[113][114]
Murray's next appearance was at the grass courts of London. Attempting to become the first Briton since Gordon Lowe in 1914 to defend the title successfully,[115] Murray progressed to the third round, where he faced Mardy Fish. At 3–3 in the final set with momentum going Murray's way (Murray had just come back from 3–0 down), the match was called off for bad light, leaving Murray fuming at the umpire and tournament referee. Murray was quoted as saying he (Fish) only came off because it was 3–3.[116] Coming back the next day, Murray was edged out by the eventual finalist in a tie-breaker for his second defeat to him in the year.[117] In Murray's second-round match at Wimbledon, he defeated Jarkko Nieminen,[118] a match which was viewed by Queen Elizabeth II during her first visit to the Championships since 1977.[119] Murray lost to Rafael Nadal in the semifinals in straight sets.[120]
On 27 July 2010, Andy Murray and his coach Maclagan split, and Murray replaced him with Àlex Corretja just before he competed in the Farmers Classic as a wild-card replacement for Novak Djoković.[121] Murray stated that their views on his game differed wildly and that he didn't want to over-complicate things.[122] He thanked Maclagan for his 'positive contribution' and said that they have a great relationship. Jonathan Overend, the BBC's tennis journalist, reported that the split happened over Maclagan's annoyance at what he saw as Corretja's increasing involvement in Murray's coaching. But Murray had no intention of sacking him,[123] despite the press report that Murray was ready to replace him with Andre Agassi's former coach Darren Cahill.[124]
Starting the US hard-court season with the 2010 Farmers Classic, Murray reached the final. During Murray's semifinal win against Feliciano López,[125] whilst commentating for ESPN, Cahill appeared to rule himself out of becoming Murray's next coach.[126] In Murray's first final since the Australian Open, he lost against Sam Querrey in three sets This was his first loss to Querrey in five career meetings and the first time he had lost a set against the American.[127] In Canada, Murray successfully defended a Masters title for the first time. He became the first player since Andre Agassi in 1995 to defend the Canadian Masters. Murray also became the fifth player to defeat Rafael Nadal (the fifth occasion that Murray has beaten the player ranked world no. 1) and Roger Federer (Murray had achieved this previously at the unofficial 2009 Capitala World Tennis Championship exhibition) in the same tournament. Murray defeated Nadal and Federer in straight sets. This ended his title drought dating back to November 2009.[128][129] At the Cincinnati Masters, Murray complained about the speed of the court after his first match.[130] Before his quarterfinal match with Fish, Murray complained that the organisers refused to put the match on later in the day. Murray had played his two previous matches at midday, and all his matches in Toronto between 12 and 3 pm.[131]
I don't ever request really when to play. I don't make many demands at all during the tournaments." "I'm not sure, the way the tennis works, I don't think matches should be scheduled around the doubles because it's the singles that's on the TV."
The reason given for turning down Murray's request was that Fish was playing doubles. Murray had no option but to play at midday again, with temperatures reaching 33°C in the shade. Murray won the first set on a tie-breaker, but after going inside for a toilet break, he began to feel ill. The doctor was called on court to actively cool Murray down. Murray admitted after the match that he had considered retiring. He lost the second set, but forced a final-set tie-breaker, before Fish won.[132] At the US Open, Murray played Stanislas Wawrinka in the third round. Murray bowed out of the tournament, losing in four sets.[133] However, questions about Murray's conditioning arose, as he called the trainer out twice during the match.[134]
His next event was the China Open in Beijing, where Murray reached the quarterfinals, losing to Ivan Ljubičić.[135] At the Shanghai Rolex Masters, Murray reached his seventh Masters Series final.[136] There, he faced Roger Federer and dismissed the Swiss player in straight sets.[137] He did not drop a single set throughout the event, taking only his second title of the year and his sixth ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title. Murray returned to Spain to defend his title at the Valencia Open 500 but lost in the second round to Juan Mónaco.[138] However in doubles, Murray partnered his brother Jamie Murray to the final, where they defeated Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi. The victory was Murray's first doubles title and the second time he had reached a final with his brother.[139][140] Murray reached the quarter finals at the BNP Paribas Masters losing to Gaël Monfils in three sets.[141] Combined with his exit and Söderling's taking the title, Murray found himself pushed down a spot in the rankings, down to no. 5 from no. 4.[142] At the Tour finals in London, Murray opened with a straight-sets victory over Söderling.[143] In Murray's second round-robin match, he faced Federer, whom he had beaten in their last two meetings. On this occasion, however, Murray suffered a straight-sets defeat.[144] Murray then faced David Ferrer in his last group match. Murray lost the first two games, but came back to take six in a row to win the set 6–2 and to qualify for the semifinals. Murray closed out the match with a 6–2 second set to finish the group stage with a win,[145] before facing Nadal in the semifinal. They battled for over three hours, before Murray fell to the Spaniard in a final-set tie-breaker, bringing an end to his season.[146]
Murray started 2011 by playing alongside fellow Brit Laura Robson in the 2011 Hopman Cup. They did not make it past the round-robin stage, losing all three ties against Italy, France, and the USA. Despite losing all three ties, Murray won all of his singles matches. He beat Potito Starace, Nicolas Mahut, and John Isner . Murray, along with other stars such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djoković, participated in the Rally for Relief event to help raise money for the flood victims in Queensland.[147]
Seeded fifth in the Australian Open, Murray met former champion Novak Djoković in the final and was defeated in straight sets. Murray made a quick return, participating at Rotterdam. He was defeated by Marcos Baghdatis in the first round.[148] Murray reached the semifinals of the doubles tournament with his brother Jamie. Murray lost in the first round at the Masters Series events at Indian Wells and Miami. Murray lost to American qualifiers Donald Young and Alex Bogomolov Jr. respectivly. After Miami, Murray split with Àlex Corretja, who was his coach at the time.[149]
Murray made a return to form at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he faced Nadal in the semifinals. Murray sustained an elbow injury before the match but put up a battle losing to the Spaniard after nearly three hours.[150] Murray subsequently withdrew from the 2011 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell due to the injury.[151] Murray played at the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, where he was then beaten in the third round by Thomaz Bellucci.[152] After Madrid, Murray proceeded to the Rome Masters where he lost in the semifinals against Novak Djoković.[citation needed] At the 2011 French Open, Murray twisted his ankle during his third round match with Berrer and looked like he may have to withdraw but limped round to with the match.[153] However Murray carried on and battled back from two sets down against Troicki in the fourth round. A ball boy inadvertantly interfered with play at a start of a game and eventually found Murray found himself broken and 5–2 down before recovering to win the set.[154] Murray lost in the his first semifinal at Roland Garros, against Rafael Nadal.[155]
Murray defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, to win his second Queen's Club title..[156] At Wimbledon, Murray lost in the semifinal to Nadal, despite taking the first set.[157] At the Davis Cup tie between Great Britain and Luxembourg, Murray lead the British team to victory.[158]
Murray was the two-time defending 2011 Rogers Cup champion, but lost his first match in the second round, to South African Kevin Anderson.[159] However, the following week, he won the 2011 Western & Southern Open, beating Novak Djoković, 6–4, 3–0 (ret), after Djokovic retired due to injury.[citation needed] At the 2011 US Open, Murray defeated Somdev Devvarman in straights sets in the first round, and battled from two sets down to win a five set encounter 6–7, 2–6, 6–2, 6–0, 6–4 with Robin Haase. He then defeated Feliciano López and Donald Young in straight sets in the third and fourth round. He then fought out a four set encounter with American giant John Isner 7–5, 6–4, 3–6, 7–6. He reached the semi-finals for a third time in a row this year, but again lost to Rafael Nadal in four sets 4–6, 2–6, 6–3, 2–6.
His next tournament was the Thailand Open, Murray went on to win the tournament defeating Donald Young 6–2, 6–0 in 48 minutes. He only dropped one set all tournament. The following week he won his third title in four tournaments by winning the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. His opponent in the final was Rafael Nadal who he beat for the first time in the year by winning in three sets 3–6, 6–2, 6–0. Murray dropped only four points in the final set. He then completed his domination in Tokyo by winning the doubles partnering brother Jamie Murray defeating František Čermák and Filip Polášek 6–1, 6–4. This is his second doubles title and with this victory, he became the first person in the 2011 season to capture both singles and doubles titles at the same tournament. Murray then successfully defended his Shanghai Masters crown with a straight sets victory over David Ferrer in the final 7–5, 6–4.
The defence of the title meant he overtook Roger Federer in ranking points and moved up to no. 3 in the world. At the ATP World Tour Finals, Murray lost to David Ferrer in straight sets, 4–6, 5–7, and withdraw from the tournament after the loss with a groin pull. With the early loss and withdrawal from the tournament and with Roger Federer winning the title, Murray dropped one position back in the rankings to end the year as no. 4 in the world behind Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer.
Murray started the season once again ranked world no. 4 and appointed former world no. 1 Ivan Lendl as his new full-time coach.[160] He began the season by playing in the 2012 Brisbane International for the first time as the top seed in singles. He also played doubles with Marcos Baghdatis.[161] He overcame a slow start in his first two matches to win his 22nd title by beating Alexandr Dolgopolov, 6–1, 6–3 in the final.[162] In doubles, he lost in the quarterfinals against second seeds Jürgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner in a tight match which ended 6–3, 3–6, 13–15.[citation needed]
In the week prior to the Australian Open, Murray appeared in a one-off exhibition match against David Nalbandian at Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club, home of the unofficial AAMI Classic. Murray emerged victorious, defeating Nalbandian, 6–3, 7–6, after coming from a break down in the second set.[163] At the Australian Open, Murray started off with a 4-set win against Ryan Harrison. In the second round, he beat Édouard Roger-Vasselin in three sets, and in the third round, he beat Michaël Llodra, also in three sets, to proceed to the last sixteen.[164] Murray went on to beat Mikhail Kukushkin in the fourth round, 6–1, 6–1, 1–0 (ret), after his opponent retired due to the searing heat in Melbourne. Murray also beat Kei Nishikori in straight sets in the quarterfinals. Murray played a 4 hour and 50 minute semifinal match against Novak Djokovic, but was defeated, 3–6, 6–3, 7–6, 1–6, 5–7.[165]
At the Dubai Open, Murray defeated Novak Djokovic in the semifinals, 6–2, 7–5,[166] but lost in the final to Roger Federer, 5–7, 4–6.[167] At the 2012 BNP Paribas Open, Murray lost his opening second-round match to Spanish qualifier Guillermo García López, in straight sets, 4–6, 2–6. This was the second successive time that Murray had lost his opening match at the event.[168] Following Indian Wells, Murray made the finals of the Miami Masters, losing to Novak Djokovic, 1–6, 6–7.[169]
In Rome, he was eliminated in the third round by Richard Gasquet, 7–6(1), 3–6, 2–6.
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 2008 | US Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 2–6, 5–7, 2–6 |
Runner-up | 2010 | Australian Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 3–6, 4–6, 6–7(11–13) |
Runner-up | 2011 | Australian Open (2) | Hard | Novak Djokovic | 4–6, 2–6, 3–6 |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | A | P | Z# | PO | SF-B | F | NMS |
Won tournament, or reached Final, Semifinal, Quarterfinal, Round 4, 3, 2, 1, played in Round Robin or lost in Qualification Round 3, Round 2, Round 1, Absent from a tournament or Participated in a team event, played in a Davis Cup Zonal Group (with its number indication) or Play-off, won a bronze or silver match at the Olympics. The last is for a Masters Series/1000 tournament that was relegated (Not a Masters Series). This table is current through to the 2012 Australian Open.
Tournament | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | Win % | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||
Australian Open | A | 1R | 4R | 1R | 4R | F | F | SF | 0 / 7 | 23–7 | 76.67 | ||||||||
French Open | A | 1R | A | 3R | QF | 4R | SF | 0 / 5 | 14–5 | 73.68 | |||||||||
Wimbledon | 3R | 4R | A | QF | SF | SF | SF | 0 / 6 | 24–6 | 80.00 | |||||||||
US Open | 2R | 4R | 3R | F | 4R | 3R | SF | 0 / 7 | 22–7 | 75.86 | |||||||||
Win–Loss | 3–2 | 6–4 | 5–2 | 12–4 | 15–4 | 16–4 | 21–4 | 5–1 | 0 / 25 | 83–25 | 76.85 |
Murray is best described as a defensive counter-puncher;[170] professional tennis coach Paul Annacone stated that Murray "may be the best counterpuncher on tour today."[171] His strengths include groundstrokes with low error rate, the ability to anticipate and react, and his transition from defence to offence with speed, which enables him to hit winners from defensive positions. His playing style has been likened to that of Miloslav Mečíř.[172] Murray's tactics usually involve passive exchanges from the baseline, usually waiting for an unforced error. However, Murray has been criticised for his generally passive style of play and lack of offensive weapons, prompting some to call him a pusher.[173] He is capable of injecting sudden pace to his groundstrokes to surprise his opponents who are used to the slow rally. Murray is also one of the top returners in the game, often able to block back fast serves with his excellent reach and uncanny ability to anticipate. For this reason, Murray is rarely aced.[174] Murray is also known for being one of the most intelligent tacticians on the court, often constructing points.[175][176] Murray is most proficient on a fast surface (such as hard courts),[177] although he has worked hard since 2008 on improving his clay court game.[178]
Early in his career, most of his main tour wins came on hard courts. However, he claimed to prefer clay courts,[179][180] because of his training in Barcelona as a junior player.[181]
Murray is sponsored by Head and plays the YOUTEK Radical Pro with a Prestige grommet. He wore Fred Perry apparel until early 2010, when he signed a five-year £10m contract with adidas. This includes wearing their range of tennis shoe.[182]
Murray identifies himself as Scottish and British.[183][184] Prior to Wimbledon 2006, Murray caused some public debate when he was quoted as saying he would "support anyone but England" at the 2006 World Cup.[185] He received large amounts of hate mail on his website as a result.[186] It was also reported that Murray had worn a Paraguay shirt on the day of England's World Cup match with the South American team.[185]
Murray explained that his comments were said in jest during a light-hearted interview with sports columnist Maurice Russo,[187] who asked him if he would be supporting Scotland in the World Cup, in the knowledge that Scotland had failed to qualify for the tournament.[188] Sports journalist Des Kelly wrote that another tabloid had later "lifted a couple of [the comments] into a 'story' that took on a life of its own and from there the truth was lost" and that he despaired over the "nonsensical criticism".[189]
Murray protested that he is "not anti-English and never was"[183] and he expressed disappointment over England's subsequent elimination by Portugal.[190] In an interview with Nicky Campbell on BBC Radio 5 Live, Tim Henman confirmed that the remarks had been made in jest and were only in response to Murray being teased by Kelly[187] and Henman.[191] He also stated that the rumour that Murray had worn a Paraguay shirt was untrue.[191]
In an interview with Gabby Logan for the BBC's Inside Sport programme, Murray said that he was both Scottish and British and was comfortable and happy with his British identity.[192] He said he saw no conflict between the two and was equally proud of them. He has also pointed out that he is quarter English with some of his family originating from Newcastle, and that his girlfriend, Kim Sears, is English.[193]
In 2006 Murray caused an uproar during a match between him and Kenneth Carlsen. Murray was first given a warning for racket abuse then he stated that he and Carlsen had "played like women" during the first set.[194] Murray was heavily booed for the remainder of the interview, but explained later that the comment was in jest to what Svetlana Kuznetsova had said at the Hopman Cup.[195] A few months later Murray was fined $2,500 for swearing at the umpire during a Davis Cup doubles rubber with Serbia and Montenegro. Murray refused to shake hands with the umpire at the end of the match.[196]
In 2007 Murray suggested that tennis had a match fixing problem, stating that everyone knows it goes on,[197] in the wake of the investigation surrounding Nikolay Davydenko.[198] Both Davydenko and Rafael Nadal questioned his comments, but Murray responded that his words had been taken out of context.[199]
In 2008, Murray withdrew from a Davis Cup tie, leading his brother to question his heart for the competition.[200][dead link]
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Sporting positions | ||
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Preceded by Sam Querrey |
US Open Series Champion 2010 |
Succeeded by Mardy Fish |
Awards
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Preceded by Kate Haywood |
BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year 2004 |
Succeeded by Harry Aikines-Aryeetey |
Persondata | |
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Name | Murray, Andy |
Alternative names | Murray, Andrew |
Short description | Tennis player |
Date of birth | 15 May 1987 |
Place of birth | Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom |
Date of death | |
Place of death |