ANDY Murray's dash to the airport to catch the first flight home was probably the fastest the Scot had moved all weekend. Beaten 7-5, 6-2 in the semi-final of the Masters Cup by Nikolay Davydenko on Saturday, he was utterly exhausted at the end of his most successful season – but there was work still to be done.
The three hours he had taken to defeat Roger Federer on Friday night had left him drained and aching. When he came to face Davydenko, he could barely move in the opening games. But no matter how tired he felt, Murray was not to be beaten easily an
d it took the Russian nearly an hour and three-quarters to get the better of him. Such is Murray's fighting spirit.
Now, rather than sit back and enjoy a well-earned rest – and take the opportunity to spend some of the £2.5million he has earned this year – Murray will be back at work again next week. His rush to get home was to give himself a few days of breathing space before he starts his warm-weather training in Miami and the build up to his first tournament of the New Year in Doha. His schedule is relentless, but he would not have it any other way.
Miles Maclagan, his coach, will monitor the training regime but he knows that he does not have to behave like a sergeant major – Murray's appetite for success is the only spur the Scot needs to put in the long hours and the hard graft. And as Maclagan has toured the circuit this year, he has only seen that hunger and that competitive fire in the very best.
"I think he has found his game style," Maclagan said. "I just think that now he's comfortable in how he wants to play. It was partly me learning how he should play – and him. But I would probably also say it was that he has become competitive in every single match.
"I've been fortunate in working with Andy to see a little bit more of Roger (Federer] and Rafa (Nadal] as well and they have an unconditional competitive streak inside them. Even with Roger, who is very gracious and beautiful to watch, there is a steel streak of competitiveness in there. To witness that close up is when you realise that the unyielding competitiveness is the overriding characteristic of these top guys."
From leaving Wimbledon after the quarter-final stage, Murray's game has matured and his approach has changed. The more he won, the more he settled into his role as one of the world's top players. These days he can beat anybody when he is playing well, but knows how to win when he is not at his best. The result has been five titles, a place in the US Open final and three victories over Federer. Maclagan is not surprised by the success, but he is a little taken aback that it has all happened so quickly.
"We sometimes have to pinch ourselves a little bit," Maclagan said. "It does hit you every now and then. I thought a lot of Andy when we started and my respect for him has grown over the year, especially in the last few months. To see it from the inside has been incredible. It is not just on the tennis court that he's competitive, it's all-round.
"From some of the tennis I had seen him play before we started working together, I thought he was possibly one of the five best players. But I suppose if you'd said he was going to win two Masters Series and get to the final of a Slam I would have bitten your hand off."
The work in Florida will mainly be on Murray's fitness, strength and stamina. Maclagan does not feel the need to tinker unduly with his charge's game – it is just a matter of improving what is already there. And luckily for Maclagan, Murray is a perfectionist.
"I think the big focus is going to be physical again," Maclagan said, "because this is the guy's chance to really physically fill up the tanks in terms of strength and endurance. Game-wise, I look on it a bit differently. You're working on stuff throughout the year. I don't think there are any problem areas. Obviously every good player would like to make more first serves and do a bit more on the return. But I don't see any problem areas in his game. It is just a question of taking everything to maybe half a level or a level better."
By the time the Masters Cup comes to London next November, Murray and Maclagan will have done everything in their power to ensure that there will be no desperate dash to get away and that the Scot can stroll out of the O2 Arena with the trophy tucked under his arm.
The full article contains 835 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
