Andy Murray told to shut up and stop whingeing by Martina Navratilova
By IAN STAFFORD Last updated at 11:24 AM on 17th October 2010
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Andy Murray swept aside Juan Monaco at the Shanghai Masters to set up a final showdown against Roger Federer today.
The British No 1 shrugged off a wobble midway through the first set to run out an easy 6-4, 6-1 winner.
Despite this week's revival in fortunes, former Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova fears that the Scot has returned to his bad, whingeing old ways.
Stay cool: Navratilova says Andy Murray must stop being too hard on himself
Navratilova, 53, believes Murray has not recovered from losing the Australian Open final back in January to Federer, who yesterday beat Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-4.
Navratilova, a 59-time major winner, including 18 singles Grand Slams, feels Murray is in danger of missing out on the game's top prizes, and must learn from World No 1 Rafal Nadal, who retired with a torn quadricep against the Scot in their Melbourne quarter-final but roared back to win the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
'Andy should have done a lot better this year because he has it all,' said the Czech-born American, who was in London undergoing altitude training in preparation for her Mount Kilimanjaro climb in December for the Laureus Sports Foundation.
'I don't think he's recovered mentally from what happened in Australia at the start of the year. He had his chances in Melbourne but he didn't go for it, played safe and I think, as a result, he's got very uptight with himself.
'In Australia he wasn't whining and feeling sorry for himself like he used to, but since January he's reverted to his old self. I get the feeling he gets p***** off when his opponent plays well, almost as if he thinks, "How dare he play that great shot", rather than rise to the challenge like Nadal does.
Admiration: Rafael Nadal can be the best ever, insists Navratilova
'Nadal welcomes the challenge. His reaction is: "Come on then, I'll do better", whereas Andy says "I can't believe he aced me again. That's so lucky".
'Andy doesn't give his opponents enough credit and because of that he's too hard on himself. It would take a great deal of pressure off him if he accepts from time to time that his opponents can play good tennis, too, and, just like Nadal, he can still handle it.
'It's too easy to say he's completely missed the boat when it comes to winning a Slam, but he'll have to get a move on.'
Navratilova's admiration for Nadal is obvious, not only in her comparison to Murray but also to Federer, whose world record 16 Slam singles titles will, she believes, be surpassed comfortably by the Spaniard.
'Can Roger Federer win another Slam? Maybe, but his era is definitely over. As long as Nadal stays fit, Federer will never be the World No 1 again.
'Roger's pushing 30 while Nadal has a good five years on him. I started to notice my powers of recovery began to wane at 26 and 27 so Roger's gone very well and stayed hungry. But he cannot get any better, whereas Nadal's only now getting into his stride.
'Federer's time as the world's greatest ever men's player may prove short-lived because Nadal could surpass all the records.
Climb every mountain: Martina Navratilova on a charity trek
'He has nine Slams already to his name and the French Open is pretty much a gimme for him for the next few years unless, like last year when he lost to Robin Soderling, he gets injured.
'You can be pretty safe in predicting Nadal will claim two Slams a year for the next five years, so that puts him on 19 Slams and I'd be confident in saying he should get to 20 at least. Having won already on all four surfaces, he will be the greatest tennis player of all time.'
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Andy Murray told to shut up and stop whingeing by Martina Navratilova | Mail Online
. Except maybe Karlovic.