THE coach who has worked longer with Andy Murray than any other is confident the 22-year-old Scot has what it takes to win his semi-final against Andy Roddick today.
Glaswegian Leon Smith, who spent six years working with the teenage Murray and first met him when he was only five, has watched his former charge fulfil the promise of those early years, and believes his American opponent will not be versatile enough
to win the match.
The difference between Murray, the No3 seed, and Roddick, the No6, can be summed up in one word, Smith explained yesterday. "Returns," he said. "Both serve well, and Andy Roddick is arguably one of the best servers ever, but when it comes to the return game Andy Murray is way more effective. He's got to be patient, but he is definitely more likely to break serve."
Indeed, while Roddick may be right up there challenging Ivo Karlovic for the title of most formidable server on the tour, Murray is the best returner, at least when measured by games won against the serve.
It is no coincidence that the Scot's childhood idol, Andre Agassi, was also renowned for that aspect of the game. Although the two are different physical types, there is still something reminiscent of the former champion in Murray's ability to retrieve so many improbable situations.
Smith, who is now based in America, but does a lot of his work as an LTA coach at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton just a mile or two from the All England Club, believes the demanding endurance training which Murray has been undergoing for the past 18 months has been of major importance in helping him make the most of his ability.
"He had the talent and the tennis brain, but at 17 and 18 his body was not coping with the demands of men's tennis. His tennis talent was, and he was able to produce great results, but to go deeper into tournaments, and consistently every week, he was finding that tough.
"His serve was always something he needed to get more aggressive. He used to use his serve to start a point. Now he uses it to end the point too. The same with his forehand. He used to use that to keep a rally going, but now he can end one with it."
Smith was aware from his earliest meetings with Murray that here was a special talent. Some of the traits he saw then remain vital part of Murray's game today.
"Andy just didn't want to lose," he recalled. "Even at a young age he didn't want to make mistakes, and you can still see that in his game. In his second-round match here against Ernests Gulbis, for example, he made only five unforced errors, which is incredible.
"He has such strong inner belief. This is what he sacrificed all his teens and his childhood for.
"It's amazing how quickly he got there. He's already won more titles than Greg Rusedski or Tim Henman and he's still only 22. That's pretty impressive."
Although happy to assert that Murray will win today, Smith did not want to make a prediction about the final, preferring, like the player himself, not to look beyond the next match.
"Yeah," he replied when asked if Murray could make it to the final. "From what he's done this week, and looking at the form of both, Andy's level has been consistent throughout. Federer is a different scenario. Andy can't and won't look past Andy Roddick at the moment, but if he was to get to the final it would be a great occasion to play against possible the greatest player."
Smith would not pretend that Murray was always easy to get on with, but puts that mainly down to circumstances.
And he certainly thinks that, special ability apart, Murray is a normal man who is able to keep his feet on the ground.
"Any teen is a hard challenge. When he was 17 we travelled around the world for 36 weeks, and there was no funding then so were sharing a room. It was quite intense.
"We were with each other for six years.
"He's so down to earth. Just normal. No weird and wonderful lifestyle.
"He has a settled relationship with Kim, which is great. He's just a normal guy."
MATCH FACTS
BETTINGANDY Murray is 1-4 to book a place in his maiden Wimbledon final, according to Ladbrokes. And the Scot, who can still be backed at 5-2 with the firm to win his first slam, is 11-8 to see off the challenge of Andy Roddick in straight sets.
The American is 11/4 to upset the world No 3 and 14/1 to go on and lift the trophy.
Ladbrokes spokesman, Nick Weinberg, said: "Punters believe that their home-grown hero is unstoppable and are tipping him to go all the way."
Scottish internet firm, McBookie.com, is also offering 10-1 that it will be a perfect day in the Murray household come Sunday night with both brothers being crowned Wimbledon champions. Jamie is in the semi-finals of the mixed doubles with Liezel Huber.
WEATHERWhile there is the risk of a couple of thunderstorms this morning, forecasters are predicting a settled day, with prolonged sunny intervals, with temperatures expected to hover around 27c.
SCHEDULERoger Federer's semi-final against Tommy Haas is first up on Centre Court and is scheduled to begin at 1pm. If the Swiss wins in straight sets, Murray's match would begin around 3pm, four sets could take the match beyond 4pm and a five-set epic between the pair could keep an expectant public waiting until around 5pm before they see Murray in action.
ROOFThe forecast, together with the scheduling of matches today makes it unlikely we will see a repeat of Murray's epic match against Wawrinka, when the match was played in its entirety under the Centre Court roof.
