From the Scotsman: http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/othersport.cfm?id=333872006

TENNIS exists in a very small world, and it is easy to get carried away. Roger Federer is just 24 years old, and yet he is being described as one of the all-time greats of the sport. At the same time, one Andy Murray, the world No.42 and a chap who has yet to complete one full year on the ATP circuit, has been compared to Federer.

Murray, an extremely bright young man and one not known for overweening ego, is keen to play down any such comparisons. Yet he knows that if he is going to base himself on anyone, it might as well be the best in the business. After winning his first title in San Jose two weeks ago, he went to Memphis and then Las Vegas to try to repeat the process. Suddenly he discovered that it was not easy as he lost in the quarter-finals and first round, respectively.

"I think there's a lot of respect for Federer because he keeps his runs going for seven, eight tournaments at a time," Murray said. "Not that I'm anywhere near as good as him, and I'm not saying I'm going to be anywhere near as good as him. But to keep it going is mentally very tough. I'll obviously learn from this experience, but I'm surprised how Federer does it so well."

The similarities between Federer and Murray are worth noting. Both finished their 18th years ranked in the mid-60s in the world, and both began their careers as angry young men. The difference is that Murray seems to be a quicker learner than his Swiss counterpart.

When Federer started out, he was a racket smasher par excellence. His talent was obvious to all, but he could not control his feelings, nor could he understand the emotional ebb and flow of a match.

"It took me a long time because I was rather crazy when I was young," Federer confirmed. "I was using too much energy with all the negative thoughts, and all of it would make me very tired at the end of a tournament.

"I would get to the quarters or the semis and I was very tired already, and I couldn't imagine myself playing two or three weeks in a row."

Murray condensed that experience into three matches at Wimbledon last year. In the third, as he raced to a two-set lead over David Nalbandian, he was flying high. Then Nalbandian hit back, Murray's adrenaline rush was over, and suddenly he was exhausted. That is when cramp set in: it was a valuable lesson that he took very much to heart.

"I don't think this year I've been like that," the Scot observed. "In San Jose I wasn't like that at all. I was quite relaxed on court, I wasn't getting too angry, so I think the older I get, I'm going to learn to stay calm a little bit more. I don't think I'm going to be like that so much now."

Federer had learned fits of pique from contemporaries. If it worked for Marat Safin, why should it not work for him? Rackets came and went, he analysed himself to the point of paralysis as matches went on and he got nowhere. So he decided to relax and take a break. But that didn't work either. He recalled: "Then I got to the stage where I was too quiet. The worst shot in history would have been just a miss, and the best shot on the planet would have been also just a regular shot. I couldn't compare any more good and bad. It was just all the same. I didn't like that either. I had to get the fire back, and eventually I did. And everything came together."

When it did come together, Federer won his first Wimbledon title, and went on to rule the world. It had taken him more than three years as a professional to find an answer to the problem, but at last he had cracked it.

When it all came together for Murray, the event was less prestigious, but the result was the same. He won in San Jose, beating Andy Roddick and Lleyton Hewitt in succession, and did so by controlling his emotions and using just enough passion to get him through. It had taken Murray just nine months on the road, and 14 tournaments, to learn the trick.

He reflected: "I think that works for me the best because I try to think a lot on the court. If I've got a lot of emotions going, it's probably not the best for my game."

Federer still gets himself angry on court, but only when he needs to spur himself. In the second week of the Australian Open he struggled, and the occasional rude word and roar of fury emanated from the normally-placid Swiss. It worked, and he won the title. Equally, Murray knows that a little teenage rant can sometimes work wonders.

"I did that against Soderling in San Jose," Murray said. "When I started the first set, I was quite slow, I was a little bit lazy with my feet. Once I got a little bit annoyed, I threw my racket a couple of times, and I started to play much better. So, I can still use it when I need to."

If Murray can achieve a fraction of what Federer has done already, he will have a marvellous career. But if Federer could have learned as quickly as Murray, who knows how great he would be now?

-- Edited by UltimateSlabbaFan at 19:08, 2006-03-05