Britain's Next Slam Winner

Following on from Nore Staat's excellent post the other day. I would like for people to be honest in their selection. Britain's next Slam winner?

I still think he can do it - not going to bet my house on it though

Bet Vodka on it

I am un-decided.

For me it is either Murray or Watson.

With every passing year, my belief in it happening slowly deteriorates.

I want it to happen for him and I would love for him to prove me wrong.

I think Watson and her game is a good fit for the current standards of the WTA Tour. She is a power hitter and her stamina is increasing gradually. By the time she is 21/22 I think she could be a top 10 fixture and maybe a Slam winner.

I am still un-decided. I need to make me mind up.

Agree about Watson, I think she is a great player. I'm hoping for a Murray win in 2012 / 2013 and Watson 2014!

I have a sneaky suspicion that Kyle Edmunds and Eleanor Dean are going to have good careers at senior level. I think Laura Robson is more talented than Heather, but Heather seems more of a fighter than Laura.

ps Murray is very close to winning a slam - it just requires three sets of dodgy strawberries and cream delivered to messieurs Djokovic, Nadal and Federer or maybe just two as Federer is beginning to fade in the slams (imo).

Despite struggling in his current match, it's gotta be Murray, he only has 3 or 4 players ahead of him.

Currently the others have too many players in front of them, and would be lucky to get past the 1st round in a slam let alone win one. Before you can even consider the others, I think they've got to go and win some big events outside the slams.

I have voted, and I have hung my hat on Watson. I think with the current strength in the Mens game. I have looked at this and constructively feel that being 25 this year, can he physically compete with the younger generation coming through like Tomic, Raonic, Young, Harrison and even Del Potro once he resumes top form? If Murray was to win a Slam beyond 25, that would be some achievement. I always felt he would win one before he was 23 and thus far not happened.

I feel Watson will have the better opportunity given that age will catch up with Williams sisters and imagine if they were out of the equation would leave the Womens Grand Slam scene an open field with players outside the top 10 with every opportunity to win a Slam.

But come on Murray!!!

I voted for Murray. Some of the young guys show great promise in the junior game, but there is no guarantee that this will translate into greatness on the senior tour. Watson is a fighter with a fantastic attitude and a willingness to run down balls, but she doesn't look to have a killer game - I'm not convinced by Robson - wonderful forehand but she is not the most athletic player. I think both girls will provide some great matches, fantastic upsets in big tournaments and get us all on the edge of our seats, but I don't know that I believe either will become major winners.

Murray has to have a really good realistic chance - I do feel that his A+ game is probably competitive enough to go toe to toe with the other top three, it is his B game that I think falls short and it is inevitable during two weeks of a major that a player won't find his A game for every match. The other top three have B games that are good enough to hold off the rest of the field - I don't think Andy has, and this is a danger for him. He has to be able to exploit his chances - as Rafa ages in competitive years, Roger becomes more inconsistent, and Novak inevitably is off for one tournament, Murray must be there ready to strike - carpe diem and all that. The one match that made me begin to doubt that he would was his inability to seize the day against Roddick at W 2009, when the stars seemed to be aligning nicely for him to battle TMF for the trophy in the final.

Hopefully Lendl will put some more steel in the backbone for when the stars align nicely again!

Hey TP. Happy New Year

I feel with Watson and Robson, the comparisons. Watson is much fitter than Robson, however I feel Robson has better hands than Watson. It is almost like the Henin/Serena comparison. Serena could hit anyone off the court, but Henin had a much more refined game. I think Watson can win a Slam and will. Watson is very precise and robotic in terms of the length in rallies she plays, Robson is more controlled and is unlikely to play percentages tennis and is more aggressive than Watson and will go for her shots.

2 very different styles and intriguing how it will un-fold when they battle for the British no.1 spot.

Happy New Year to you too legend . The green face in your smiley rather resembles my complexion after holiday festivities!!!!

It would be fab to see more than one Brit having a shot at the big ones, so hope you are right about the girls.

legendkillar wrote:I have voted, and I have hung my hat on Watson. I think with the current strength in the Mens game. I have looked at this and constructively feel that being 25 this year, can he physically compete with the younger generation coming through like Tomic, Raonic, Young, Harrison and even Del Potro once he resumes top form? If Murray was to win a Slam beyond 25, that would be some achievement. I always felt he would win one before he was 23 and thus far not happened.

I feel Watson will have the better opportunity given that age will catch up with Williams sisters and imagine if they were out of the equation would leave the Womens Grand Slam scene an open field with players outside the top 10 with every opportunity to win a Slam.

But come on Murray!!!

The peak for Mens Tennis is increasing with each year and so I can see Andy having no problem, during the next 4 years challenging for 3 out of the 4 slams per year. I think there is an overplaying of the ability of today's youngsters, simply because they are the best they've got. As for Del Potro - well I'll start to get excited when he wins a few Masters events etc

Can we remember that in order to get amongst the Top 4 a player has to do at least two of the following;-

1) Win a Slam
2) Get to the SF's of at least two slams
3) Win a couple of Masters
4) Get to the SF's of at least 4 Masters
5) Get to the SF of virtually every event they play

And even this gives no guarantees!!

Nothing more, that the assumption that Andy has to look anxiously over his shoulder shows just how underrated he and the rest of the Top 4 are. The only way they will be overtaken in the next 4 years is if there are serious injuries / retirements

banbrotam wrote:the assumption that Andy has to look anxiously over his shoulder shows just how underrated he and the rest of the Top 4 are. The only way they will be overtaken in the next 4 years is if there are serious injuries / retirements

And how inconsistent and disappointing players outside the top four have been despite many being hailed as part of a golden generation a few years ago.

Can we have a "not born yet" option?

Nioklay Davydenko in 2006 finished year end number 3.

1 Grand Slam semi
1 Masters 1000 title. No further semi final appearances
4 Masters 250 titles 2 runner up

James Blake finished 4th that year too.

No GS Semi Finals. 1 QF appearance.
1 Masters event runner up and WTF runner up.
5 250 Master event titles + 1 runner up

That you would say is a very minimal requirement.

Should Andy or Roger fail to win a Masters 1000 event in 2012 or a Grand Slam should make the top 8 interesting.

time please wrote:

banbrotam wrote:the assumption that Andy has to look anxiously over his shoulder shows just how underrated he and the rest of the Top 4 are. The only way they will be overtaken in the next 4 years is if there are serious injuries / retirements

And how inconsistent and disappointing players outside the top four have been despite many being hailed as part of a golden generation a few years ago.

There is nobody useful who wasn't around years ago. In fact, the current "generation" is actually the one from3/4 years ago who have all got a bit older.
It's laughable that David Ferrer is now enjoying his best extended period in the game, at the age of 29.

It's interesting to note that GB has 15 players in the junior top 150 now that all the players who have got too old have been removed from the rankings.

Liam Broady 3
Kyle Edmund 9
Josh Ward-Hibbert 32
Luke Bambridge 51
Sam Hutt 68
Jordan Angus 74
Jonathan Cornish 80
Evan Hoyt 95
Peter Ashley 117
Scott Clayton 118
Joshua Page 123
Myles Orton 124
Jonny O'Mara 131
Tom Colautti 133
Tom Hill 144

I appreciate that it means nothing to real terms, but it is promising. Particularly with the guys at the top end, and the likes of Peter Ashley who still has 3 full years left as a junior.

I am sorry but this poll is massively claw clutching largely. When the promising youngsters can prove they can live with the big boys, win tournaments and progress into the latter rounds of slams then it is time to discuss when/if they will win a slam but I won't hold my breath. Call it experience of British tennis - don't get your hopes up.

Apart from the two speculative punts on the girls, nobody has voted for anyone besides Murray.

So I'm not sure who you think is 'getting their hopes up' here.

Nope just saying that the poll comes across as clutching at straws. After all most of the players in it are in the embryonic stages of their careers and a million miles away from being possible slam winners that is all I am saying on the subject.

CC,

When Andy was 17/18 a lot of pundits and insiders of the game tipped him to become a top 20 player in the world. He achieved that in 2007. To say it is clutching at straws is a narrow view to have of the talent Britain has.

Heather Watson is 19 and is ranked 87 in the world
Laura Robson is 18 and is ranked 131 in the world

Both for me making progress similar to Andy at his respective age.

Laura is 17 and turns 18 later this month

She is indeed.

I thought I would get ahead as it is a couple of weeks away