Andy Murray, Great Britain's favorite to win at 2013 Wimbledon, takes on Jerzy Janowicz, the first Polish player to advance to the tournament's semis. We examine the head-to-head matchup as both players will look to advance to the Men's Singles Finals at Wimbledon. Will this grand slam have another upset before the conclusion of the tournament?
Murray and Janowicz have met twice in their careers. Their head-to-head history shows both players splitting their meetings with Janowicz winning the most recent match in 2012 at Paris. Murray might be in danger as Janowicz has only gotten better since their last meeting. The stats from that match show that Janowicz is an exquisite server. He finished their last match with 22 aces, more than twice as many as Murray's nine.
This does not favor Murray at all.
Murray had a lot of trouble in his quarterfinal meeting against Fernando Verdasco. The Spaniard featured a very heavy forehand, accompanied by a very heavy serve. Verdasco failed to capitalize on his two-set lead because he pressed. Murray was mentally weak, however, Verdasco continued to try pounding aces by the Scot, applying pressure on himself and forgetting to put the ball in play. Verdasco had 11 aces in that meeting. Meanwhile, Janowicz, who has totaled the most aces in the tournament, finished off his quarterfinal meeting with 30 aces against fellow Polish player Lukasz Kubot.
In order for Murray to succeed, he will have to accept that Janowicz will get some serves by him. However, he also has to understand that Janowicz can't only win on aces. If Murray can internalize this idea, then he will capitalize on his opportunities, not try to do too much and make Janowicz earn his points rather than forcing plays and trying to do too much.
Murray was close to a loss on Wednesday, but he proved strong and determined as he is still chasing after the elusive Wimbledon title. The Scot is attempting to becoming the first player out of Great Britain to capture a major at the All English Club in over 70 years.
