Wimbledon 2012: Roger Federer vs. Andy Murray from a Tactical Perspective

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at Internationaled.org

Published: July 7, 2012

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There are no secrets between Roger Federer and Andy Murray. After 15 encounters (8-7 in Murray’s favour), neither will expect to spring any real surprises in Sunday’s final. With so little to separate them, what should each player try to do in order to avoid yet more post-final tears?

Historically, Federer has been most successful against Murray when he has been able to come out on top in their lengthy cross-court backhand exchanges.

But given that Murray has, by all accounts, one of the best two-handers in the game, this is not something the Swiss can bank on happening tomorrow. All things being equal, Murray will undoubtedly win the vast majority of backhand-to-backhand rallies.

Instead, Federer might look to open up his down-the-line forehand. Unfortunately, this would require the World No. 3 to regularly take his backhand up the line, a shot that he has often struggled with in the past.

The book on Murray is that he will generally play his forehand cross-court, particularly when not given time to measure his shot. This not only goes to the Swiss’ strength, but it also exposes an oftentimes fatal technical flaw in the Scot’s game: Murray has the prototypical counter-puncher’s forehand.

What this essentially means is that he has the perfect forehand for passing shots. It is heavy, with lots of top-spin. It is designed to make his opponent volley from their shoelaces.

Unfortunately for Murray, this fact means that he has to work harder in order to hit with length on the forehand side, which opens up Federer’s down-the-line forehand, and oftentimes on short balls. The Swiss regularly employs this pattern of play to great effect, approaching the net for a little additional security.

It is worth laboring on that last point, given that Federer may make some adjustments at the net. Murray’s tendency is to hit the cross-court pass almost exclusivel...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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