Mark Petchey says Andy Murray's development bodes well for Slam success come the new year.
Petchey says Scot should fear no-one next year
Andy Murray has come on so much this year that it's hard to see how he can improve next season.
Although the Masters Cup eluded his grasp, I felt his Shanghai success over Roger Federer was the second best match of the year behind the Wimbledon epic between the Swiss and Rafael Nadal.
Andy found a competitive consistency that Federer could not blunt even though he was desperate to win and go through to the semi-finals. The victory was testament to all the strength and conditioning work he has done but also the constancy that has seeped into his game since Wimbledon.
Part of that comes from playing week-in, week-out at the highest level, point after point, game after game and that endurance can only stand him in good stead.
Top four get serious
It's going to be tough for anyone - Federer, Nadal, Djokovic or Murray - to win Slams next year; they are going to have to play some great tennis along the way. To pick up a major you will have to play several serious matches not just one as might have been the case in the past.
It will be a big surprise if one player dominates in the short-term the way that Federer has done over recent years and Andy will be in the mix.
His first serve has been good for the most part. Maybe his second needs a little work and could be better placed at times, but we are talking about a 2-3% improvement and then it is down to how he performs on the day.
If Andy feels it is an issue then there are no magic cures other than hard work. His technique is perfect so it's about trying to serve that little bit closer to the line, tighter into the body.
Miles better
Coach Miles Maclagan is obviously part of that development and much has rightly been made of his influence and the rest of 'Team Murray'.
Very few people go through their career with the same coaching staff but the proof of whether any change is working is in the pudding and five titles including two Masters events tell their own story.
People will question how much impact Miles can have when he is working with someone as talented as Andy but you have still got to make sure he is prepared every time he steps onto court.
At the moment Andy is driving the train but it may not always be that way. There are lots of hours of practice and grind and his motivation will slip, which is when Miles will come into his own.
For now, though, it's very important for Andy to get away from it all for 10 days or so before he slowly starts working towards 2009 and no-one can doubt that he's deserved it.
