Aimee Howarth talks about her sporting hero, Cristiano Ronaldo
Steve Puddicombe on why he thinks Mark Cavendish should win Sports Personality of the Year 2011
The Yorker's sports team says what they would like for Christmas this year
The second blog for The Yorker from the University of York Riding Club
Murray performed fantastically throughout the competition and beat Andy Roddick 6-3, 6-1 in their semi-final clash to set up a final meeting with Tsonga.
The final had been scheduled to take place on Sunday afternoon but rain saw the match postponed until Monday lunch time, much to the annoyance of fans who had to queue from the early hours of the morning for tickets.
Tsonga took the first set 6-3 and looked comfortable and in control in the second. Murray had sparks of genius but had altered his game from his performance against Roddick and wasn’t quite as aggressive.
At 4-4 in the second set, Murray gained a couple of break points but didn’t take the advantage. The set played out to a tie-break, which Murray convincing won 7-2. This levelled the match at one set each.
Tsonga continued to play well but Murray had now found his stride and, with over 6,000 people cheering him on, he took the third set 6-4, clinching the trophy for the second time.
Pressure and expectations will now mount on Murray as Wimbledon is only one week away. After playing so well against Andy Roddick, 2009 Wimbledon runner-up, and looking quick, fresh and attacking, he has proved he can compete with the best on grass.
In the past, Murray’s temperament has got the better of him and he has struggled with his temper and defensive nature under pressure but this victory will give him confidence so let’s hope he can take this good form into the next fortnight and become the first man since Fred Perry in 1936 to win Wimbledon.
Fellow Brit James Ward also had an outstanding week at Queens: ranked 216th in the world, he surpassed everyone’s expectations and reached the semi-finals, and admitted he hadn’t expected to get past the first round.
His passage to the semis saw him gain victories over defending champion Querrey in the fourth round and then Mannarino in the quarters.
To add to the pressure, the end of Ward’s fourth round match was postponed and played on the same day as his quarter-final – truly testing indeed for the young and inexperienced player.
After winning his quarter-final and attracting a horde of media attention, Ward faced Tsonga in the semi-final.
He looked nervous in the first set and struggling to get into the game, looking relived to have put a few games on the board before Tsonga took the set 6-3.
Ward fought back strongly though, to the appreciation of the crowd, and came close to taking the second set in a tie-break, which Tsonga won 9-7 to claim victory.
For the 24-year-old, however, it is hopefully just the start of a very successful career. His victories this week will see him rise to about 170 in the world and he will also compete in Wimbledon next week.
Wimbledon will be played from 20th June – 3rd July – don’t forget to watch!
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