5 reasons Andy Murray is struggling with form right now

 

 

World No.1 Andy Murray has had perhaps the most surprising downturn in form in the 2017 season following his ascent to World No. 1 last year. The Scot, who showed a singular consistency in the 2016 season, winning his third Grand Slam tite at Wimbledon, has had middling to poor results this year, ones that he will likely have hoped to improve on at the Madrid Masters, where he was top seeded. 

A finalist last year, Andy Murray has not managed to progress beyond the Round of 16 at the 2017 edition of the tournament following a straight sets loss to young Croat talent Borna Coric.

No clay court slouch himself, Coric has beaten Murray before, in 2015 – but yesterday thoroughly outclassed the World No. 1 in straight sets to progress to the quarter-finals of the tournament. 

 

 

1. Lack of Confidence

 

Following a string of early losses this year, the mercurial – and very emotional Andy Murray has famously struggled with his temper on court. Having battled hard to overcome what seemed like an insurmountable points deficit to Novak Djokovic to ascend to World No. 1. 

But now, Murray is struggling to move past the earliest rounds at tournaments and if he does, the top seed sees unexpected losses routinely. This year, he has made two finals – winning of those one title, but since then, has had recurrent losses early on – in the Round of 16, Round of 32, quarter-finals, to players with far less experience than himself. 

Those repeated losses can take a toll on a player, and may have done so in the case of Andy Murray. A lack of confidence can be deadly to the best player, in this case that ‘best’ actually being Andy Murray.

That may have worked on Murray to a point that the Scot is finding it difficult to now cope.