ANDY MURRAY is a keen student of tennis history and Rafael Nadal taught him a valuable lesson yesterday – hype can't trump heart.
The fans patiently queued through the night and waited in the drizzle but this time there was no comeback to raise the roof on centre court.
Ruthless and relentless, Nadal simply out-thought, out-fought and out-gunned the British No.1, securing hi
s quarter-final progress 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in just under two hours.
In the cathedral of tennis, Nadal cooly administered the last rites to home hopes of ending 72 years of hurt. "He played so much better than me," admitted Murray. "I didn't play my best, which is disappointing, but regardless of that he was just playing too well for me.
"His forehand was ridiculous, he rushed me on every point and he hit every line.
"In the past, I felt I had a chance against him but he's hitting the ball so cleanly and with so much control, I think he would have beaten anyone.
"I tried to hang in there and hope to get a chance but it just didn't happen. He has amazing consistency on every surface and plays with such intensity."
The effect of his five-set, fourth-round thriller just 48 hours previously had taken its toll on Murray, both mentally and physically.
Clearly frustrated, he let out several anguished yelps but refused to blame tiredness for his straight-sets loss.
Murray, however, can take positives from this fortnight. He reached the last eight of a Grand Slam for the first time and showed a new level of fitness that silenced his critics.
His performance will move him back into the top ten of the ATP Tour rankings and will mean he heads to next month's US Open, on a surface he claims to be his favourite, with renewed confidence.
It's also worth noting that Tim Henman didn't reach his first Wimbledon semi-final until he was 23. Murray is still only 21.
"There isn't a part of my game that I can't improve," added Murray. "I need to take inspiration from how Nadal has improved in the last few years, especially on grass.
"It's going to take a lot of hard work but I truly believe I can get to Nadal's level.
"If I learned one lesson it's that I need to dictate more rallies when I'm playing against the really top guys. I need to be more aggressive, they can bully you if you are too passive – Nadal really showed that."
Nadal is clearly a major threat to Roger Federer's bid to win a sixth consecutive title and Murray believes that on yesterday's evidence he could even be favourite.
Nadal said after his win: "That was my best match ever at Wimbledon.
"I tried to be aggressive and to really attack him.
"To win like this is surprising, especially against a player like Andy.
"He would have been confident after his last match but maybe that game made it tougher for him. He's a very good player. He'll be a top-five player very soon and he's got a very good chance of winning this tournament in the future."
Meanwhile, Federer continued in style against Croatia's Mario Ancic yesterday.
He has now won 65 successive matches on grass and he is yet to drop a set at this year's Championships.
And, ominously for his rivals, the 26-year old has no intention of taking things easy yet. "I have a chance to win this tournament for the next five or ten years," he said. "My dream is to win not just this year but for many more years to come. This surface is perfectly suited to my game.
"It's great to be in the semi-finals again, I know how to do it from here – I know what it takes."
• NATIONAL School Sport Week is a government initiative managed by the Youth Sport Trust and supported by Norwich Union with the aim to engage over three million children in sport, which started on June 30.
The full article contains 687 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
