TennisFanatic7 said:
I'm very surprised that the Murray/GB debate escalated to such an extent. It's all a bit silly really. 45% of Scotland voted to separate but we are still one country. This doesn't mean that all the English people are going to turn against 45% of the Scottish population. They had their say, including Murray, and that's it. All he said was that he was swayed away from the "No" campaign because they were being so negative about Scotland.
So what if he received some abusive tweets? Does that mean he's going to get booed at Wimbledon? Give me a break. Hundreds of other sportspeople and other celebrities receive abuse on Twitter all the time, it's just keyboard warriors letting off some steam and in this case they decided they had a good excuse for it. If you think idiots on Twitter represent the views of the English/British public towards Andy Murray, then, I don't even know. It beggars belief really that it has been discussed to such lengths in this thread after numerous members from the UK have assured that he won't face a different atmosphere at Wimbledon next year or even in London in a few weeks if he qualifies.
At worst he'll get a couple of heckles at Wimbledon next year but you can take them about as seriously as the comedians who yell "Come on, Tim" when he plays on Centre Court. If you're looking for fireworks or any noteworthy hostility/change in behaviour towards him, you're wasting your time, and that's an absolute guarantee.
Sorry to drag the thread back off topic, I just had to say my piece after reading pages 2-3 of this thread.
A stacked day of action tomorrow with Djokovic, Nadal and Murray all in action. Sadly I won't be able to catch any of them.
I have mixed feelings about Andy's opening match. He's had just one day off after playing in trying conditions in Shenzhen four days running. JJ can be a tricky opponent and has beaten Murray before, but the way he plays should make for a lot of shorter points and a less physically gruelling match than it would be against a Granollers or Verdasco in the first round. I think as long as Andy serves reasonably well he'll win but he may find himself in some bother if he gives Janowicz too many weak second deliveries to have a swing at.
I don't think the debate per se escalated. What is wrong in talking about it? It is the draconian
attempt at curbing discussion that led to escalation. The problem is some folks are very sensitive
and try to protect their players from any "perceived slight" etc. That used to happen primarily in
WTA forums [typically when fans (you know, the few I am talking about, I don't have to
name them) of Dominatrix get upset that their player is not shown enough]. Now, a similar
thing seems to be happening in ATP forums.
I have already said in some other threads that Murray is, of course, free to have and express
his opinion. But, let us not be a naïve here. If a celebrity tweets his opinion about an issue
a day before the vote, he is obviously using his celebrity status to influence the opinion of
general public. Again, there is nothing wrong in doing so. The key point is that this is not
the same as "John Doe" having an opinion and expressing it.
As much as murray is free to have an opinion and express it, the forum members should
also be free to discuss the ramifications it will have. It is as simple as that despite some
moderators coming around to protect Murray.
Even though I am quoting your post, I don't think you are one of those irrational fans
of Murray or someone who cannot take a slight. But, it appears that way with some fans
of Murray and these leads to moderators trying to curb discussions.
In your post, you genuinely contributed to the discussion.
Frankly, I think Wimbledon is too far away and in general the memory of public
is very limited. Most probably, it will have no effect on Murray's play in Wimbledon
next year.
However, if Murray makes it to WTF this year (I hope and think that he will make it),
it will be fresh in the memories of folks out there. Also, it appears that there are more
fans from other European countries who come to see WTF at London O2 Arena than
the locals (I don't have stats to back it up, but is just a personal perception). So,
often it appears that Murray does not get enough support there. Now, with this
thing thrown into the mix, I wonder how he will be received there. I don't think
this has anything to do with pot stirring.
respect by others
Yet I don't understand the frustration. You couldn't have expected the "Deathless One" to do much worse.
