Andy Murray is fighting for a level that he can accept

An updated at the ATP rankings this week:

Only two years ago, Andy Murray celebrated the most productive season of his illustrious career, winning a second Wimbledon singles title, a second Olympic gold medal and winning nine singles titles altogether. He also came from way behind to overtake Novak Djokovic for the year-end No. 1 world ranking by ousting the Serbian in the title round contest at the ATP Finals in London.

Murray closed that 2016 campaign magnificently, triumphant in his last five tournaments down the stretch, better week and week out than he had ever been before. After concluding the previous eight years among the Top 6 in the world—and finishing 2015 at No. 2 on the planet—Murray at long last established preeminence as the best.

But, after climbing to the pinnacle, the Scottish gladiator and his wide ranging legion of followers could not have envisioned what was ahead. His abbreviated 2017 season concluded at Wimbledon with a five-set quarterfinal loss to Sam Querrey. By the end of that encounter Murray—who dropped the last two sets 6-1, 6-1—was a crippled competitor, almost entirely compromised by an ailing hip.

Thereafter, his daunting physical issues lingered. Murray went to Australia this year hoping to compete, but discovered he was not up to the task. He had hip surgery, and did not return to the courts until he played in London at the Queen’s Club in June. Going into Shenzhen this week, Murray had appeared in five tournaments, compiling a 5-4 match record, looking like a pale imitation of the player he once was.

In fairness, there have been days when he has performed in a manner resembling the Murray of old—at least for portions of matches, in some sets, under the right circumstances. But so far, he has not sustained the sharpness required to carry him back closer to the top of the game.

In the best of times, Murray seemed to be suffering during matches more than most of his colleagues. Grimacing was commonplace. Leaning over uncomfortably between points and conveying the depth of his physical discomfort after a strenuous backcourt exchange was business as usual. Limping around the court when he had been pushed to the edge of his physical limits was a Murray trademark.

These days, his physical problems have been compounded by the supreme difficulties of reintroducing himself to the sport as he once knew it. His body can’t cope yet with the day to day pounding of playing tough matches against hard competition under duress. Hence, Murray has already had a couple of false starts since the outset of his comeback. He lost a fiercely fought battle against Nick Kyrgios at Queen’s Club in his first match back.

Perhaps buoyed by that performance, Murray moved on to Eastbourne the next week, and upended none other than another man trying to reestablish himself: Stan Wawrinka. But then he lost a rugged three set clash with Kyle Edmund. Realizing he was not ready to confront best-of-five set play, Murray elected to bypass Wimbledon. He reemerged in Washington on the hard courts in late July, winning a string of three bruising skirmishes in a row over Mackenzie McDonald, Edmund and Marius Copil. Those were honorable victories, but more than his body could handle. He withdrew from Washington prior to a quarterfinal against Alex De Minaur.

Once again, Murray’s body was telling his mind to slow down. He took the next week off, went to Cincinnati and lost his opening round duel with Lucas Pouille. At the US Open, he fell in the second round against old rival Fernando Verdasco. Murray owned a 13-1 career winning record over the southpaw Spaniard heading into that clash.

Murray upset over Verdasco allegedly receiving coaching in New York:

After that loss, Murray was asked about being injured and trying to work his way back to where he would like to be.

“For sure there are some doubts because you just don’t know," he said. "If things keep going smoothly and physically I continue to improve, I believe I will get back to competing for the biggest competitions, because there is no reason I couldn’t. Because of the path that I’ve been on the last year with the many, many ups and downs, trying to come back and it not quite working, then ending up having the surgery and stuff, I think it’s completely normal to have these doubts.”

He is right on target with those comments, as realistic as anyone in his position could be. Meanwhile, Murray is playing this week at the Shenzhen Open and next week in Beijing, ending his season there and then training for 2019. That strategy might work, but it must be worrisome to his band of loyalists that the restorative process is taking so long.

Some might argue that many of the leading players have made stunning comebacks recently. Roger Federer missed the entire second half of the 2016 season, yet he won the 2017 Australian Open over Rafael Nadal, who was also on the comeback trail after playing only 53 matches in 2016—a very low number for him. As it turned out, Nadal and Federer split the four majors in 2017, and were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the world.

Djokovic was gone across the second half of 2017 with his troublesome elbow, and, after a lackluster start, was a shell of his former self until the spring of 2018. He proceeded to win Wimbledon and the US Open. The Serbian is likely to finish this year back at No. 1 in the world. His comeback has been vastly under appreciated.

So only a fool would completely count Murray out. My feeling, though, is that he does not have the outstanding technical tools that Federer, Nadal and Djokovic all have showcased in different ways, tools that have carried that dynamic trio back to the heady places where they used to reside. Federer, of course, has one of the best serves in the history of tennis, a deadly accurate delivery that earns him clusters of free points. No one plays like Nadal with his whirlwind topspin forehand and lefty craftiness. His modern day backhand is far better than his old one, and the Spaniard comes forward now unhesitatingly to end points emphatically. Djokovic is a defender unlike anyone who has ever played the game, his return is the best in history, his backhand is the finest in tennis and he can control rallies with uncanny precision.

No knock on Murray, but he can’t match his foremost rivals with the same surpassing strengths. It is no accident that his career record against Federer is 11-14, with Federer winning their last five showdowns. In turn, Murray is 7-17 versus Nadal and 11-25 in his series with Djokovic. To be sure, Murray has a terrific return of serve, a remarkable backhand and many other attributes, but will his court coverage ever be what it was in that period between 2008 and 2016? It's doubtful. And if that is the case, he simply can’t compete with the best players in his business.

I hope I am wrong, but I am not optimistic about a serious revival for Murray in 2019 and beyond. He is a thorough professional who will leave no stone unturned in his pursuit of excellence and a staunch competitor who will fight ferociously into the future. Sadly, however, I conclude that his very best tennis is behind him. Stationed at No. 311 in the world at the moment, he will make a push toward the Top 20, and might even move back into the bottom of the Top 10. But I can’t envision Murray back in any more major finals.