Bradley Wiggins with his sideburns, Mo Farah with his eyes, Andy Murray with his amazement, Ellie Simmonds with her smile - but what about the man who kicked everything off? The first time we really pinched ourselves in the summer was when a British man won Wimbledon. His name was, and still is, Johnny Marray.

"If I can win Wimbledon there must have been something strange going on," he says when we meet in Paris where he reached the semi-finals.

"It was a fantastic summer and, as Wimbledon came before the Tour De France and the Olympics, I suppose it was a good start to a great summer."

In July, Jonny Marray became the first British man to life the men's doubles trophy since 1936.

Marray, 31, from Sheffield, won the All England Club's doubles title alongside Denmark's Freddie Nielsen. They won a series of tight matches, including a semi-final against the world number one team, the Bryan brothers, and on the Saturday night, the eve of Andy Murray's singles final against Roger Federer, Marray became the first British man since 1936 to win this title.

Centre Court went patriotically doolally in a manner which appeared alien at the time but would become an almost daily sensation from the Velodrome to the Stadium a few weeks later.

"I've got a Wimbledon title to my name, nobody can ever take that away from me," he says proudly, but matter of factly, after he has finished his chicken and rice in the players' lounge. "It was amazing!

"We hadn't really discussed it [playing together] until deadline day because I was meant to be playing with someone else [Adil Shamasdin of Canada]. We had a lot of close matches and a lot of luck but I watch the re-run every now and then to bring a smile back to my face."

Now he is back with Nielsen at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, to top the year of their lives.

"I have to pinch myself sometimes because even in March and April I was playing challenger tournaments and not really getting a look in at these sort of Masters events," he said.

"I went [to the O2] a few years ago to watch and I couldn't believe how nice a venue it is. We were lucky enough to get tickets through the ATP and it was a special atmosphere and massive arena."

But the renewal of the Nielsen partnership (Marray played with Paul Hanley in Paris) will be a one-off, a celebration really of their Wimbledon triumph.

"I'm on the lookout for a new partner because Freddie's focusing on the singles," said Marray, who will play Indian duo Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna alongside Nielsen on Tuesday at 12noon.

"Our schedules won't really match. In the long term I'm looking for someone to play week in week out with to get the continuity.

"I've asked around a few people and nothing's fully decided. I don't know yet but hopefully by the end of the Masters I'll have it sorted."

Marray's story is a classic example of perseverance. In the early part of the century he was seen as a possible successor to Tim Henman with a natural serve/volley game and a good attitude.

In the summer of 2004 he took recent world number one Lleyton Hewitt to two tie-breaks at Queens, volleying like Stefan Edberg, beat grass court expert Wayne Arthurs in Nottingham and then, at Wimbledon, really should have beaten Karol Beck out on Court 5.

I watched the match, which Marray lost 10-8 in the final set, with Mark Petchey who was working at the LTA at the time. He was crushed. Nobody, Petchey said, deserved a Wimbledon win more than this guy from Sheffield.

"It took me a lot of time to get over that, I lost a lot of confidence," Marray reflects.

"Then I had a shoulder injury and I was out for about a year. That was a difficult time because I obviously wasn't earning much money and I kind of second guessed myself whether to carry on playing.

"All athletes have those low moments when injuries happen to you but I loved the sport and always wanted to see how well I could do.

"It makes it kind of more special that I persevered and got rewarded."

During his career Marray has seen a lot of his buddies from the old national training base at Queens Club drop out and turn to club coaching. A sobering thought; the guy or girl who teaches Aunt Beryl her backhand has probably cleared more money over the past few years than the Wimbledon champion.

"Probably between 18 and 21 I was losing some sort of cash every year but since then I've been breaking even at least." says Marray. "I wasn't getting into debt but I wasn't making a good living.

"The top guys get paid a lot of money and they deserve that because they're at the top of their profession but for the lower ranked guys it can be difficult.

"It can be demoralising but I don't play for the money at the end of the day. I just wanted to test myself to see how far I could get and have some good experiences."

Good experiences? The one at Wimbledon, that Saturday night in July, wasn't bad. And if the Marray/Nielsen reunion can rock the stage at the O2 one final time, then the perfect year will have a the perfect end.

All of Jonny Marray's doubles matches, in addition to every singles match, will be live on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra or the BBC Sport website throughout the week.

"I can assure you there wasn't the same intensity in that session," joked Murray afterwards. But there was still sufficient quality to remind us which is the preeminent rivalry in the autumn of 2012.

This is the thing about the ATP World Tour Finals; the best in the world come together in one place, for one final push.

This may have been practice, but when the tournament begins on Monday, Murray and Djokovic will continue a rivalry which has since moved from New York to Shanghai (where they played another brilliant, deciding set final) and it would be entirely appropriate if, as well as in the group phase, they met in the final a week on Monday.

Djokovic, Murray and Federer will lock horns in London this week. Picture: Getty Images

Roger Federer will definitely have something to say about that. The defending champion has won this title six times and, after defeat in the final at Basle, he pulled out of the Paris Masters to rest fully for the final week of the season.

His plan? To win Group B comfortably and then take out Murray or Djokovic or - preferably, from his point of view - both. Given his record of finishing the season strongly, who dares to stand in his way?

On Saturday night though, at the Royal Courts of Justice, an interesting insight. Taking the stage alongside Federer and the other qualifiers at the gala opening ceremony, Andy Murray was asked to reflect on his amazing season. "It's all thanks to this guy," he said, patting Federer on the back. "He made me cry at Wimbledon."

It wasn't deliberately patronising, it wasn't premeditated. It was all in good spirit because Murray has enormous respect for the Swiss. It made 400 people laugh, including Roger. But make no mistake, this was not something he would have done a year ago.

Murray, naturally shy, owned the stage at that moment and looked every bit an Olympic champion and Grand Slam winner. It was the first time I have seen him dominate Federer in public, without a tennis racquet in his hand. Read into that what you will.

The second seed in Federer's group, David Ferrer, is still in Paris trying to win his first Masters 1000 title. He plays Jerzy Janowicz in Sunday's final before hot-footing it under the Channel.

Also in that group is Juan Martin Del Potro, about to play his fourth tournament in as many weeks, and Janko Tipsarevic who, I'm told, still isn't feeling great after a bout of dizziness forced him to retire in his quarter-final match in Paris. Richard Gasquet is on site as the first alternate, but tournament officials don't expect him to be called upon.

All the players have been arriving at different times from Paris and with the line-up not finalised until late on Thursday, it's been a logistical headache for the excellent organising team.

Did Juan Monaco get measured for a suit which will never leave the peg? Is Milos Raonic on a giant banner which never leaves an office? What about Nicolas Almagro's page in the programme? At least eight players were still in contention for a place only a few days before the start.

The ATP can't say it didn't see this coming. The decision to back up Paris, the final Masters 1000 event of the year, with the World Tour Finals was taken to help shorten the season.

But rather attempt a meaningful restructure of the calendar, they simply decided to chop out a couple of rest weeks. The big question now is: would that extra week be better served giving the players a break before the World Tour Finals, or turning a six-week off season into a seven-week break?

If this tournament deserves a bit of extra breathing space from ATP high command (a board meeting is scheduled for four days this week), the Paris Masters also needs to know where it stands.

Is it any great surprise that finals weekend arrived in the French capital with only one member of the London field? Federer didn't make the start line, Djokovic lost his first match, Murray his second. This has been a long hard season and much as players want to win every match they play, they have to prioritise.

There's talk of Paris moving to February but that's far from guaranteed. As usual, the task of representing both the players and the tournaments' best interests is proving a tricky tightrope for the ATP to walk. If anything, I expect them to announce a one-year calendar, for 2014 only, while Brad Drewett and his board iron out longer-term issues.

Hopefully the talks will also decide to keep the season finale here in London. As Tomas Berdych suggested the other day, try to fix what is wrong with the tour, not what is right.

The O2 has proved to be the perfect venue for tennis and with Europe dominating the top 10 it makes sense to resist the advances of Rio for a while yet. Let's hope for a fantastic week of tennis!

A final word, if you'll allow me, for Sam Cheetham, one of the speakers at the gala event I talked about earlier. Sam, 14, is indebted, as I was at his age, to Great Ormond Street Hospital. He has a rare lung condition, pulmonary hypertension, which requires constant attention.

Sam wants to be a Formula 1 engineer and spoke of his journey more confidentially than I, as a broadcaster, ever could. You are an inspiration, Sam. Great Ormond Street is the charity supported by the ATP World Tour Finals, which begins on Monday.

The BBC will have live television, radio and online coverage of the ATP World Tour Finals - details on the BBC Sport website.

"I feel very relieved, happy, proud and also very tired..."

Every now and then he would smile, keen to confirm this was, indeed, the best moment of his life, but otherwise this was the classic case of the man needing time for it to sink in.

Earlier, champagne had been cracked in the locker room and sprayed over the teetotaller. Murray, who famously hasn't drunk since a messy night in Barcelona as a teen, was set to break the habit of his adult life last night.

And how he deserved the celebration.

This was an incredible performance over almost five hours against a fearsome opponent. He saved his best match for last, his best set for the decider and, as Lendl had requested, he won the final point - the only point which interests the three-time US Open champion.

Andy Murray celebrates after beating Novak Djokovic of Serbia to win the men's single final of the 2012 US Open. Photo: Getty

The contest, played in unpredictably blustery winds, turned into a frightening test of will and mental strength.

Murray had been struck by self-doubt in the hour before the match, lonely in the locker room. And so he faced up to the challenge of beating those demons, the past losses and the small matter of one of the best players in the world.

The first set lasted almost a hour and a half. The second he led by a double break, only to see the lead fritter away. He still managed to edge it.

Djokovic, the world number two, the best hard court player in the world, fought back strongly, dangerously, inevitably.

With the iron man resurgent on the other side of the net, Murray was in grave danger of slipping to a fifth final defeat, one which would desperately hurt. That was the logical thought after four hours of magnificent but energy-sapping tennis.

But Murray sprinted out for the start of the fifth and, defending heroically in the corners, Djokovic style, he took control. A few early "come ons" and some great interaction with the boisterous New York crowd certainly helped and, as he pulled clear, reality dawned that this would be the night.

The night when Murray came good on his early promise. The night the challenger became the champion.

He has just beaten the best two players in the world: Federer in straight sets at the Olympics and Djokovic over five at the US Open. He can now move on, relax, and shoot for more Slams and that world number one position. Both are attainable on this evidence.

And so the curtain can finally be drawn on this incredible sporting summer of 2012.

It really shouldn't have been this good. After all, it started with a hosepipe ban, ended with the wettest summer on record and featured a double dip recession plus a penalty shoot out defeat.

But then came Wiggo and Weir, Jess, Mo and Greg, the rowers, the cyclists, the gamesmakers, Ellie Simmonds and lots of Clare Balding.

Yet we still weren't satisfied! How could this amazing season end with Coldplay's greatest hits?

Autumn, you've got a tough act to follow. Andy Murray has just capped the greatest summer.

Greats of the game such as Chris Evert, Billie Jean King and Lindsay Davenport were all saying the same thing: here is a player with a big future in the game and the potential to be a future Grand Slam winner. They should know.

Having sat by the side of Court Four here at Flushing Meadows in recent years and seen Robson blow commanding leads in the final round of qualifying, heartbreaking to witness at close hand, it's so encouraging to see the development in her game.

We mustn't forget that the British teenager is still only 18.

Robson is improving all the time and her forehand is an especially potent weapon. Pic: Getty

That Wimbledon Junior title, which flagged up her enormous promise, came at 14. The New York qualifying disappointments came at 15 and 16. Injuries have got in the way of her physical training, but her development has been gradual and effective.

The silver medal Olympic experience appears to have helped with confidence, just as the hiring of new coach Zelko Krajan, formerly with Dinara Safina and Dominika Cibulkova, has focused the winning mentality.

Staying free from injury has been a key factor, allowing her to concentrate on definite improvements to her game.

There's never been a concern about Robson's ball-striking - for a couple of years she's been one of the cleanest hitters on the tour - and this week in New York her groundstrokes were more consistently accurate than before, her returns more intelligent.

But the big improvement has been with her movement, especially side to side across the baseline, in and out of the corners. This has caught the eye of many of the wisest observers of the game, including BBC Radio 5 live pundit Nick Bolletieri.

"She's getting to more balls in the corners," says the former coach of Andre Agassi, Monica Seles and Jim Courier. "Now imagine if that picks up another notch and when she gets to those balls she can come up with an offensive shot."

Bolletieri said Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena, had one of the best bits of advice for aspiring players. According to Bollitieri, Williams told his daughters to "run for every ball". When they asked if they should chase balls even when they are out, he responded: "Don't ever say that. Every ball is in."

Bollitieri adds: "You have two sets of eyes - your eyes and your brains. When they work simultaneously, your feet and body move without thought. Whenever you think whether or not you can get a ball, forget about it.

"That's why I believe that quality practice is better than quantity practice. Move your feet for every ball, especially when you hit that slap forehand that's going to bring defensive balls back. If you can't get there and climb on top of it, what's the point in hitting it?

"Laura, you never stopping learning baby."

And there are few better to learn from than the Florida octogenarian. He was so impressed by the way she saved eight match points against Sam Stosur, chasing down balls on which perhaps she would have given up 12 months earlier. That individual heart and desire is something even his renowned academy can't coach.

But he's tweaked a few serves and spots room for improvement with Robson. "She's got to put a little more action on her second serve," he says. "She's got a good slice serve. Now she's got to put a little junk on it once in a while so it quivers in the air."

He flutters his hand around as he says that, and smiles with genuine excitement about what the future may hold for the British number two.

After a brief break at home in London, Robson - who won many new fans in America with her smile and personality as much as her game - will head off for a tour of Asia, with two tournaments in China then two in Japan.

With a new world ranking in the mid-70s, she has a terrific chance to push on over the final few months of the season and further develop the skills she mastered in America.

The challenge will be to forget about her previous life as a player ranked outside 100, playing second-tier tournaments and scrapping around for wins here and there.

Back-to-back victories over Grand Slam winners Kim Clijsters and Li Na, as well as that very decent challenge against defending champion Stosur, have proved that Robson belongs at a world-class level.

There are so many Roddick moments to recall from a distinguished career - I loved the quality and sportsmanship of his epic quarter-final with Younes El Aynouai in Australia earlier that year - but nothing tops that sprint finish to the line at Flushing Meadows.

On a totally green hard court in 2003, before the blue was introduced, Juan Carlos Ferrero managed to get his racket on just one of Roddick's four serves. It was the freedom of an all-American sport-mad kid, just doing his thing.

Roddick, 21, had become a Grand Slam champion and a new American idol, who would end that year as the world number one, had arrived on the international scene.

Friends and family were seated alongside the journalists: Brooklyn Decker, his wife, Larry Stefanki, his coach, Stephen Little, the London taxi driver who drove him randomly one night and became a close friend.

They knew what was coming, the reporters weren't so sure.

Was he pulling out of the tournament? Was it a birthday celebration? Roddick did well to keep the news under wraps and, through the microphones of the media, announced it to the world on his own terms. He deserved that.

Andy Roddick has won 32 career titles in a 12 year professional tennis career. Photo: Getty

It was a sudden development, and the twittersphere reacted with shock, but, if we're honest, it had been coming. For a while, Roddick has struggled to live with the intense pace and quality at the top of the men's game. He's not interested in simply "existing", to use his phrase.

Feeling uncompetitive against the best, Roddick put it simply: "It is time," he said.

And, on Thursday, it was impossible to argue with that.

Then we had Friday night.

Roddick thrashed one of the better prospects in the game (supposedly) Bernard Tomic and there were plenty of fans wondering if he'd made a premature call.

The Arthur Ashe night session is Roddick's stage in America. Nobody has played more times under the New York lights. As he whacked, wheeled, bounced and smiled his way to victory, he put the feeble Tomic firmly in his place. (The Aussie was "pathetic" according to US commentator Patrick McEnroe). Does Roddick have one more glorious run left in him?

Whatever happens here, Andy Roddick has been great for tennis. Like Kim Clijsters, also retiring after this year's tournament (she won in mixed doubles last night to prolong her career another day), he will be missed by colleagues, fans and media alike.

We will miss his huge serve, sharp wit, perennial perseverance, even the funny fidgets.

Not a point went by without the right shoulder of his shirt being adjusted. I hope in his next life - in TV studio, office, garden, wherever - he keeps adjusting that shoulder of the shirt and requests a nearby towel.

His press conferences were often legendary. Silly questions would be dispatched to the boundary with tongue-in-cheek disdain. Half-volleys would be snaffled with quick-witted enthusiasm. And he always gave an honest answer.

"How do you rate Gonzalez's chances?" [in the 07 Australian Open Final v Federer].

"Slim."

"What was your favourite press conference?" he was asked last night.

"I don't really rate press conferences. It's not as though I leave the room fist-pumping my way down the corridor after a good one."

Classic, straight-faced, A-Rod.

Earlier, he was on good form on the court. He revealed he got a bit emotional as he walked past a TV studio and a saw a montage of his career. "The sound was down but I'm guessing it was set to an 80s ballad" he quipped.

He loved a bit of chat with an under performing umpire and would try to outwit them at change of ends. Once in Australia, he left the chair advising the crowd: "Stay in college, kids. Otherwise you may become an umpire."

When he needed to be serious, he had no trouble switching gears.

In the past 12 months he has been the most articulate voice of the locker room in the ongoing campaign for a better share of Grand Slam tournament revenues. The players should persuade him to stay as their spokesman and lead negotiations from the sidelines. He has also raised a huge amount of money for charity through his foundation.

Being such a popular player in the UK, it was a disappointment to many that he never won Wimbledon. How he tried.

He came close, especially in 2009, but never managed to avoid Roger Federer, who beat him in three finals. His effort in that marathon All England Club final three years ago was immense and one couldn't help but feel for him as he sat in the runners up chair as Federer paraded yet another trophy. Roddick just wanted to hold it the once.

No regrets though. It was a mighty fine career. Now a new life beckons and he's bound to be a success in whatever field he turns to, which will surely involve talking, a lot of jesting and quite a bit of fidgeting. Good luck Andy.

And what about this one? Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams...

Six different champions from the six Grand Slam singles events played so far in 2012.

It's the first time that's happened since 2005 when the names were Safin, Nadal, Federer; Serena, Henin and Venus.

So who's going to win in New York City, at the biggest and brashest of the four major events, the US Open?

Andy Murray will be looking to use his Olympic success to inspire US Open glory. Photo: Getty

The only certainty is that it won't be Nadal winning a 12th Grand Slam title. He's in Majorca, enjoying the sunshine, according to his spokesman, with no firm comeback date in the diary after the latest inflammation of his left knee.

Although unconnected to the long-term tendinitis issue, it sounds as though it's going to be touch-and-go whether Rafa makes it back for the Davis Cup semi-final between Spain and USA in Gijon. Everyone wishes him well.

So the big four, for once, is a big three and that made the men's draw a little more interesting than usual. With Federer up top, the fresh-faced number one seed, and Djokovic down the bottom, the defending champion and number two, onto which side would Andy Murray fall?

The answer was Federer's. Djokovic will be delighted about that. And, actually, I don't think Murray will be too unhappy either. After the thrashing of Federer at the Olympics, he'll be confident of winning again in the semi-final should they meet. And it avoids potential chat of "will it be a fourth Grand Slam final loss to Federer" had they been in opposite halves and met in the Championship match.

But there are tough tests before then for the Gold medallist from the London Games. Possibly Milos Raonic, the big-hitting, improving Canadian, in round four ahead of a last eight meeting with Jo Wilfried Tsonga, the 5th seed. Kei Nishikori, the Japanese 17th seed is also in that third quarter of the draw and Flushing Meadows is the most likely scene for his major breakthrough, whenever that comes (and better judges than me insist it will).

Over in Djokovic's half we find the two first round matches which stand out from the men's draw; Juan Martin Del Potro (7), a potential quarter-final opponent for the man from Serbia, plays compatriot David Nalbandian, who may be getting on but remains one of the most talented floaters out there. That match-up will excite those who look for a bit of ruction, fictional or otherwise. The story goes that the pair had to be separated in the locker room after the 2008 Davis Cup final as accusations flew in both directions. They haven't played since.

And what about Tommy Haas, the 34-year old "newcomer" of the year? Three months ago, he was playing qualifiers for the French Open, ranked outside the top 100 and fighting back from the latest of seven surgeries. Now he's seeded 21 in New York after an amazing summer of success. He faces Ernests Gulbis, the flashy Latvian who upset Tomas Berdych on day one of Wimbledon, you may remember, in the Flushing first round.

Haas reports the courts are playing pretty swiftly, according to his friend and mentor Nick Bolletieri, and he's been flying in Florida practice. One to watch, no doubt.

The WTA this week unveiled the latest stage of it's "Strong is Beautiful" advertising campaign, featuring a parade of high-profile women's tennis fans (the majority American) alongside the stars of the tour.

Some, I'm sure, will care what Donald Trump thinks, but the publicity is all free publicity right now, thanks the ongoing Serena Williams story and those who talk and write about it.

Already one of the greatest female athletes of all time, recent evidence suggests Williams is improving as a player into her thirties and justifiably is the favourite for the women's title despite her number four seeding.

She won Wimbledon and Olympic Gold thanks to a devastating display of serving, emphasising the widely held belief that she owns the finest serve ever seen in the women's game, but, more than that, she showed a wider, cuter, more tactically aware style of play. Suddenly she isn't trying to whack the ball at every opportunity.

What a whack it can be, but Serena's great improvement - particularly during the Olympics - was knowing when to hold back, build the point and expose her opponent. French coaching consultant Patrick Mourotoglou has had an obvious influence.

If she keeps it up and avoids the sort of controversy which has stalked her around New York for the past few years, she can add the US Open to that list of gongs from the the glorious summer of 2012.

Rivals will include top seed Azarenka and 3rd seed Sharapova, both in the same half, Canada champion Petra Kvitova and in-form Li Na. The Chinese 9th seed has played a superb hard-court summer so far, including the title in Cincinnati, and with Carol Rodriguez, Justine Henin's former coach, lending a hand, she could be the best of the outside picks to challenge Serena.

That section of the women's championship also features three-time winner Kim Clijsters and, despite her proximity to Brits Laura Robson and Heather Watson in the draw, it must be hoped that she has a fine run to end her amazing career on a high.

A career of two parts with Grand Slam titles either side of having her first child. She retires for good, she maintains, after the US Open and will be hugely missed. The image of Jada toddling across the stadium court to greet Mum and the trophy, well past her bed time after the final of 2010, remains one of the most memorable from recent US Opens.

Images last year were not so fun. Water seeping up through court surfaces, referees without a clue, players leading ball boys to alternative courts, rain, rain and more rain. Let's hope - just for a treat - we have a trouble-free US Open.

And so we return to those sequences I mentioned. Who comes next? Del Potro and Li Na? Just to give us eight different champions from the year? It's possible, but I'd rather go with Murray and Serena.

Inside, millions are at stake with dice, cards and slots. Outside, massive billboards promote the latest money-spinning shows of Celine Dion or Elton John.

You find yourself hanging out of the window gawping at the latest over-the-top hotel, but quickly the Vegas we've all heard about is left behind. The architecture returns to normal. We come off the I-15 for West Lake Mead Boulevard and we're in a different world.

We're still in the heart of the city but now the streets are tough with many of the houses ramshackle structures, on some children are on the steps, seemingly oblivious to the excesses down the road. Welcome to Las Vegas.

As we turn the corner, in this mostly deprived neighbourhood, a smart building looms - "The Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy". Agassi Prep, for short.

I'm here to talk tennis with the 1992 Wimbledon Champion and mark the 20th anniversary of the time he defied the odds, and a self-confessed dislike of the place, to win the greatest tournament.

First I have a little time to look around the school, with its colourful, welcoming classrooms and meet a few of the polite and respectful pupils. This year, the head teacher tells me, has seen the biggest rise in pupil numbers since the school moved from three grades only to full 5-12 age groups.

Then Agassi arrives, without fanfare, wearing a black polo-necked sweater and jeans. He looks in great shape, five-set shape and is softly spoken and welcoming.

Andre Agassi defied the odds, the establishment and his own expectations to win Wimbledon in 1992

He's here at least once a week and continues to play an active role in the school's development, indeed a few hours after my visit he is in a meeting room with the head and a couple of service providers.

"I was fortunate enough to have tennis to fall back on, I was a ninth-grade drop-out," he says. "When I think about these children and if they get into a life that they don't choose, where do they end up? Prison, gangs? To give them a future that they can choose is, for me, the best of all of it."

On to tennis. Amazingly it's 20 years since the mullet (wig) held on by the white trucker's cap and the pigeon walk on the grass he claimed to despise.
Back-to-back wins from the baseline, over three of the great serve-volleyers in Becker, McEnroe and Ivanisevic - secured a very unique place in Wimbledon history.

"I felt like it was my worst surface at the time," he says in an interview to be broadcast on 5 live at 21:30 BST on Wednesday. "But Wimbledon became a shot-making tournament for me, a place where if you hit one good ball you could take the lead in a point."

"When I played Becker in the quarters, that was his court at the time. He was the one to beat. When I beat him five, I was thinking 'is this possible for me to win'? The best thing that could have happened to me was to be the underdog in the final."

I knew playing Ivanisevic that I was going to have to do something special and I assumed I was going to lose. I went out there and let my shots fly and it taught me how to win."

We also talk about his nightmare debut in 1990 when he was thrashed by Henri Leconte in the first round and what he regarded as a massive missed opportunity the following year when beaten by David Wheaton.

"I told [coach] Nick Bollettieri that I was never going back. I felt like I was intruding on the event. There was different locker room for the seeds, and they got the practice time on the courts. I had to carry my badge everywhere I went, showing it to get in the club. I felt that, not only did I not want to be there, but they didn't want me there."

We talk about the influence of his father, who made him "hate" the sport we thought he loved, and about his recent, brutally honest book that contained the staggering confession he had covered up a positive drugs test, lying to authorities to avoid a ban.

He knows he has made mistakes. He knows he has lost admirers in the last couple of years. But he will return to Wimbledon this summer knowing, whatever people think of him, his school continues to change lives for the better and his Wimbledon win continues to inspire tennis challengers to this day.

David Nalbandian left the ATP officials with no choice but to issue an instant 'red card', or at least the tennis equivalent - a default - after injuring a line judge in the dramatic end to the Queen's final.

He didn't mean it and admitted his mistake - an instinctive action of fury and frustration - but the vicious assault on the advertising hoarding and the inevitable impact on the line judge, who was struck on the leg at point blank range, was indefensible.

How can anyone draw blood from an official and expect to stay on the field of play?

The board, which he didn't just kick but belted into next week, was directly in front of the line judge's chair. Nalbandian was facing the official and surely knew his proximity when he lashed out.

Nalbandian's decision to query his disqualification added insult to injury. Photo: Getty

He didn't mean to injure him, of course, but it was the height of stupidity.

The look on the face of the line judge, who received on-site treatment but no stitches, reflected the general feeling. It was a look, first and foremost, of utter disbelief.

The tournament and the ATP got it absolutely right. Default was the only option.

You can't change the rules just because it's a high-profile final on terrestrial television, or because important corporates are being entertained, with thousands more paying big money for their sought-after tickets.

The up-market crowd were booing and stamping because they wanted more entertainment but it was hardly a protest to be taken seriously. This wasn't an exhibition.
Many hadn't even seen the incident, certainly not up close, and I suspect many others didn't actually know why they were booing.

But off they went with their Sloaney revolt.

They were booing Chris Kermode the tournament director, who had no involvement in the decision, and booing the ground staff for bringing on the trophy, when they would normally be complimented on the annual excellence of the courts.

Goodness, they even booed Sue Barker. "Shh, shh, shh," she said into the microphone, finally settling them down.

In fairness to the crowd, most were oblivious to the severity of the incident. ATP rules had to be enforced and perhaps this should have been conveyed in a louder and more forceful manner over the PA system.

Later, as the crowd dispersed, Nalbandian held court in a packed press conference room.

His apology on court had been tarnished by an ill-advised rant at the ATP for having too many rules and, even an hour and a half later, he was still inserting "but" into every answer.

Yes, it was a mistake. But sometimes you get angry.

Yes, it was a mistake. But look at all the rules the players have to sign up to. Too many rules.

Yes, it was a mistake. But when it happens somewhere else nothing happens.

Swearing and racquet throwing, dangerous surfaces, pressure on the players. He was talking about this, that and everything.

It was a poor attempt at introducing mitigating circumstances to a self-confessed error of judgement.

Lost in all the drama was the actual champion. Congratulations Marin Cilic, you deserved the title and didn't deserve to be booed for it.

The Croatian played some terrific tennis, recovering well after Nalbandian's strong start, and looked to be on course for a comeback victory when the match was stopped.

Although in good spirits afterwards, it was hard not to feel sorry for him. He didn't get a match-point moment to celebrate and his victory ceremony, one of the moments of his career, was tarnished by the crowd over-reaction.

Sadly, as night fell, the talk of the Queen's terrace was not of a worthy champion, but of the rebel runner-up and the dramatic drawing of blood on the lawns.

Andy Murray loves his boxing and will have seen many a bout end with the corner man throwing in the towel, for the protection of his fighter.

If that option existed in tennis then perhaps Murray wouldn't still be in the French Open.
Dani Vallverdu, the world number four's travelling coach, hitting partner and confidant, was on his feet at the end of an agonising first set. Murray could hardly move, grimacing after virtually every point, and was patting serves over the net like an amateur.

I don't know who it was - Vallverdu or perhaps one of his physical team - but at least one person wanted him to stop. Murray was unable to compete, slapping the ball like a beaten man, and it seemed pointless being out there. Ivan Lendl was saying nothing, but "save yourself Andy" appeared to be the message from at least one of the others.

"I kind of heard them saying stuff," Murray told BBC Sport, "but I was zoned out, I was gone mentally.

"I was just looking at the ground, just didn't know what to think, so I wasn't really hearing. I think they were telling me to stop. I looked up at them after the first set and they didn't really want me to keep going."

Murray overcame a significant injury scare to reach the French Open third round with victory over Finland's Jarkko Nieminen. Photo: Getty

He kept going. He turned it round. He ended up winning comfortably, according to the scoreboard.

Hours earlier, in an apartment just off the Champs-Elysees, Murray rose to a grey morning with a muscle in spasm in the lower left side of his back.

It wasn't too bad in the morning, practising on Court Philippe Chatrier at 9am, ("not great, but not terrible") but the real pain hit during his warm-up behind the scenes at 10.25am.

He found himself on an exercise bike saying to his team "I can't believe this is happening". He talked about quitting there and then.

Physio Andy Ireland, one of the best in the business, assured him the muscle spasm was unconnected to the back issues he's been occasionally suffering from this year, so the decision was made to play.

And as Ivan Ljubicic, the recently retired world number three, told me later in the day, chances were that it was only going to improve as the match went on. The decision to play and the decision to keep playing, Ljubicic thinks, was absolutely correct.

"Back spasm is something that hurts, something that prevents you from giving your best, but it's also the kind of injury that only gets better," he said. "I'm sure in the next round he's going to feel a lot better, so the big scare was today."

And what a scare it was.

I confess to having the same thought as virtually everyone else during that traumatic first hour and a half: what's the point in this?

With a massive summer ahead, Murray was stubbornly going through the motions and getting a thrashing because he couldn't put weight on his left leg.

Was Murray maybe, in a warped kind of way, enjoying the challenge of beating a potentially combustible Nieminen on skill alone? He was patting the serves over but was often winning the rallies, out-thinking and out-hitting the Finn.

Nieminen was suddenly looking to his box for help. At change of ends he started walking towards the net rather than to his chair. He looked like a man desperate to receive a resignation handshake to relieve the stress for everyone.

As Murray started to loosen up, the pain easing and the shots flowing, Nieminen got more and more spooked by the situation. He started double-faulting and netting smashes, and even hit thin air with a drive-volley.

Nieminen later said: "It looked like he could hardly walk. It's not often someone looks that bad and can keep going."

Murray certainly left the crowd in no doubt about how he was feeling, and his problems certainly messed with his opponent's mind. Hard to play football against 10 men? Sometimes it's hard to play tennis against an injured opponent.

"It was his fault for letting me back in," said Murray in his press conference. "I didn't do anything special."

Murray did brilliantly to turn the match around. He didn't necessarily believe he was going to win, wasn't immune to the idea of quitting in the second set and, let's be honest, he was lucky to survive.

He, like most others, couldn't believe Nieminen's inability to make him pay. Next time he sees him, he should offer that handshake and say thanks for the gift.

But most importantly he remains in the tournament and, if the back improves, can still wish for a successful run in Paris. He thrashed his next opponent, Santiago Giraldo of Colombia, when they met on the clay of Barcelona last month.

Remember he twisted an ankle 12 months ago but was let off the hook by Michael Berrer in the third round? The recovery from two sets down against Viktor Troicki in the last 16? The crutches, the broken tooth...

As drama follows Andy Murray around Roland Garros, for the second successive year, he remains in with a chance here.

A photographer in the media conference room, disregarding common courtesy and unwritten media protocol, stops Andy Murray on his way out.

"Picture, Andy?" he grunts, attractively.

Clearly insufficient to this sweaty irritant are the millions of available photos of the world number four. Murray must feel like kicking him in the tripod. Instead he pauses and poses.

Sometimes silly things like this help assess Murray's mood and state of mind ahead of big tournaments. He was in a grump in Rome, by all accounts, but here he is chatty, obliging and as upbeat as we can ever expect.

Murray is in a good mental state as he faces his least favourite surface. Photo: Getty

"It's about feeling comfortable on the court and mentally [being] in the right place and I feel much, much better than a few weeks ago in that respect," he tells me.

He was fresh from a fun hit on Court Philippe Chatrier with occasional advisor Darren Cahill, pounding his forehand at every opportunity and rewarding the scattering of spectators with used tennis balls. When presented with a free hit at Cahill's backside (a common forfeit seen on the practice court) he hit straight into the net and laughed in embarrassment.

Having recovered from the back problem which ruled him out of Madrid and still bugged him in Rome, Murray's preparation for this second major of the year has gone well on the paprika-red clay of Roland Garros.

Eyebrows were raised by coach Ivan Lendl's absence from the practice session - he's playing an exhibition event in Frankfurt - but Murray is unconcerned by the brief separation. Lendl has been at his side for just under a week in Paris and the prep is complete.

"Physically, and in terms of the way I'm hitting the ball? Yeah - everything's done," he says.

Murray starts against Tatsuma Ito of Japan - the world number 69 who spends most of his time playing challengers - but further down the line his draw illustrates how tough this sporting challenge can be.

If the Scot manages to negotiate the first week, he could face a sequence of matches against Richard Gasquet, who beat him in Rome, clay supremo and fifth seed David Ferrer, and six-time champion Rafa Nadal. And that's just up to the semis.

If anyone doubts how hard it is to win one of these things, just consider that second-week work for a second.

Murray remains in a group of challengers behind the big three - Novak Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer. No more does he lose sleep over the desperate quest for a first major because his job is hard enough clinging onto top spot in the second tier.

Ferrer, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Tomas Berdych and the returning Juan Del Potro are all possible contenders this fortnight and if Murray stays ahead of them for the foreseeable future he's doing a great job.

For him to do that, and after a recent recurrence of a back problem, he needs his body to hold up during this most gruelling of fortnights.

"It got a little bit worse," he says of the nagging pain, "but you kind of play through it until it gets to the stage that you have to take a break."

Last year he twisted an ankle during his third round match in Paris, hobbled into the same press conference room on crutches, and was advised not to walk for a couple of days.

Instead, he came from two sets to love down to win his next match, played over two days, and ultimately reached the semi-finals, only to be denied by a rampant Nadal.

"That was one of the toughest tournaments I played last year mentally and emotionally. I went to hospital... came back from two sets down, bad light stopped play, whatever. I also broke a tooth in the middle and had to go to the dentist. It was a strange tournament but really good for me."

Another semi-final, a sixth in a row at the majors, would be another success for Murray, given his disjointed build-up and the form of the opposition.

He'll give it his best here on the well-to-do Westside of Paris, but expect a more realistic challenge for that debut major to be mounted in London and New York later in the year.

Up top, the Djokovic/Nadal rivalry continues to amaze and it would be a shock if they don't meet in yet another final. After losing to Novak twice in the clay spring of 2011, Nadal has now beaten his rival in Monte Carlo and Rome without dropping a set.

I'm sticking my neck out considerably, I understand that, as I predict a record seventh Roland Garros title for the man from Majorca.

Here was the Madrid Open tournament director sitting in the front row of the press conference room, stony faced and unnmoved, listening to his number one seed launch into a measured, yet scathing attack on the controversial new blue clay courts.

The process involved in turning the clay blue from its traditional red has made the court feel much slicker.

Novak Djokovic, fresh from a close win over Stanislas Wawrinka and warming to his theme of the week, claimed the winner of the tournament is likely to be the player who doesn't get hurt. He then confirmed that he wouldn't return next year unless the surface reverted to traditional clay.

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have both threatened to avoid next year's Madrid Open if the blue surface remains. Photo: Getty

About two hours earlier, an evidently angrier Rafa Nadal had said much the same. It would be like Cincinatti suddenly playing on grass in the build up to the hard-court US Open, he opined.

"The tournament and the ATP can do what they like," he said after his shock defeat to Fernando Verdasco, "but next year there will be one less tournament in my calendar."

Maybe not shocking after a week of negative comments, but an unpalatable thought for Santana and his boss, Madrid owner and promoter Ion Tiriac. Tournament directors spend the year buttering up their star attractions and, while they knew the blue clay would split opinion, they didn't think it would be this serious.

What started as a bit of promotional fun (remember Madrid brought in models for ball girls a few years back, so they have a taste for the eye-catching here) with the aim of assisting spectators and TV viewers to better spot the yellow ball, has escalated into a major row and potentially a huge problem for the men's governing body, the ATP.

New ATP chief executive Brad Drewett is scheduled to attend the tournament on Friday along with his predecessors Adam Helfant, Etienne De Villiers and Mark Miles. If ever an issue highlights the conflict of interest in the make-up of the ATP - half owned and run by the players, half by the tournaments - it is this one.

Back one of his leading events or protect the grumpy players? If Madrid don't back down, on which side will Drewett fall?

Tiriac and Santana must hope they get a bit of much-needed backing over the next few days.

Tiriac, the enthusiastically leftfield Romanian, hasn't got much wrong during his career as player, manager, politician, businessman and promoter. His innovations don't appeal to everyone but at least he isn't afraid to push boundaries. He just wants to sell the sport of tennis and shouldn't be criticised for that.

Santana, it should be remembered, won Wimbledon in 1966. A Spaniard winning Wimbledon? Widely believed to have coined the phrase "grass is for cows", Santana didn't like it but he conquered it.

"If I managed that", he must have thought this week, "surely Rafa and Nole can master my blue clay?!"

The problem is two fold. First, the court is definitely slippier than last year. At least Santana has admitted this.

Players are struggling with their grip underfoot, recovering from wide positions and the essential technique of the clay-court slide up the court. It doesn't look great. Unofficial spokesman of the tennis underclass, Ukrainian Sergei Stakhovsky, tweeted his belief that it's now the worst court on the ATP Tour.

The second problem is in the players' minds. Those who were against the idea of blue clay from that start are now - surprise, surprise - still against it, and therefore struggling with it. Enjoying it more, it appears, are Alex Dolgopolov, the unconventional Ukrainian who has played some delightful stuff, and Roger Federer who breezed past Richard Gasquet in 58 minutes.

But they play with more air under their feet, lighter around the court. It is the more punishing, heavier style - favoured by Nadal and Djokovic - which appears to have been penalised by this change.

That's why, to be honest, Nadal and Djokovic sounded a bit precious yesterday. Saying they won't come back unless conditions change back to being more in their favour made them sound like spoilsports in the street who want everything their way.

This was not, I'm sure, their intention. Their views will undoubtedly be listened to and Madrid may have to acknowledge that their gamble hasn't worked because when Nadal and Djokovic speak up, the tennis world tends to listen.

I'm just curious to know what would happen if, for example, Dolgopolov wins his first Masters with an exemplary week of floating, attacking tennis - adapting brilliantly to the change of conditions? Will anyone listen to him or, indeed, care?

Regardless of the rights or wrongs, the playing field here in Madrid is suddenly a more level one - ice-rink-level, you could say, and most certainly blue.

Apparently one of the illustrators who worked on the Disney film lived round the corner - although not in Boras. No matter. Stick a giant Pinocchio on a roundabout, the locals will hate it but some visiting sport journalist will mention it.

I'm told there's also a debate here about whether Boras is a town or a city. That's an easy one; it's a town - a ghost town.

Judy Murray took charge of coaching Great Britain's tennis stars in February. Photo: Getty  

Again, no matter. It seems nice enough with a well-regarded technical college, lots of students who presumably find their own underground fun, a history draped in textiles and a pleasant river, which Judy Murray plans to jump into if Britain are victorious.

(I should stress that's what her mischievous players say she's going to do. She may have other ideas, but it sounds like a good management trick to me.)

And then there's the Borashallen, venue for this weekend’s tie.

Apart from a lovely little exhibition of Swedish Olympic history in the foyer, its claim to fame is that it once hosted the Beatles. It was 1963 in fact - the year Beatlemania kicked off, thanks, in no small measure, to the fanatical scenes at places such as this.

Now another quartet from across the North Sea comes to play, but this time the stage is an indoor hard court built on wood. ("Probably the slowest indoor hard court I've ever played on," says Anne Keothavong, veteran of a decade or more on the tennis circuit.)

This is a straight play-off for a place in World Group II next year (the Fed Cup, rather oddly, has two World Groups) and Britain last got that far in 1993. It's a great opportunity for Captain Murray and her team, all of whom are in the world’s top 150.

Sweden have two players inside the top 100, Sofia Arvidsson (54) and Johanna Larsson (71) but - remarkably - nobody else inside the top 450. Britain have Elena Baltacha (63) and Keothavong (79) plus the teenagers Heather Watson and Laura Robson, who will team up for the deciding doubles rubber, if it comes to it.

For all the doom and gloom about British tennis, it is interesting to visit a country which, despite a much better recent tennis history, is actually in an even worse state right now.

Even their leading men’s player - Robin Soderling – has, I gather, suffered another setback in his recovery from series mononucleosis and won't be seen again on tour for a good while yet.

This is a very winnable tie for Britain, especially if they repeat the desire and team spirit shown in Israel in February when they qualified through the Europe/Africa zone with four wins in as many days.

"I think the mix of personalities has helped us foster a fabulous team spirit," Murray tells me. "A lot of fun from the younger players, a lot of commitment and hard work from the older players."

"The whole thing is going to hinge on how well we approach it from a tactical point of view. We've got a big job to do and I'm absolutely sure we can do it.

"I've always loved team competition. I love the tactical side of the game and the opportunity to become captain and work with the girls in a team situation and particularly to help them with the tactical side is absolutely right up my street."

And so she has analysed hours of video footage of Arvidsson and Larsson and developed specific tactics for certain situations. She spent Friday relentlessly feeding balls from a basket during the sort of "drill" sessions she believes in.

For a long time, Murray has been seen as the mum who leaps from her chair at Wimbledon when her boy is doing well. (I mean, how dare she?)

Now she's in a position of real influence at the heart of British tennis. For someone who has so much enthusiasm and experience, that can only be a good thing.

And for someone with an accompanying sense of fun and good humour, she hopefully won't be afraid to follow through with her promised celebration on Sunday if she masterminds another British win.

"We're looking forward to kicking Sweden's backside," says Laura Robson with her usual, playful matter-of-factness.

Then it's all down to the River Viskan...

From plumbing the depths of the competition in 2010 with that defeat by Lithuania, a nation with only three professional players, Britain has steadily climbed the rungs of respectability with five wins in a row.

This weekend the team faces Belgium in Glasgow with the winners guaranteed a world group play-off in September. Heady days indeed.

Central to Britain's resurgence, albeit through lowly international divisions, has been an established doubles partnership, Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins, now regulars on the ATP World Tour and recent champions in Delray Beach.

And at a time when many of the established international doubles stars of the last decade are surely nearing the end of the careers - Knowles, Nestor, Mirnyi, Paes, Zimonjic - the British pair, both 27, sense an opportunity to shoot for honours.

The cut for entries to London 2012 is likely to be very close to their combined ranking. Photo: Getty

"The top 10 is what we're aiming for," says Fleming. "As time goes on guys are going to get older and stop playing but we're not looking at it like that. We're trying to move up while they're still playing and we've had some wins which show we're capable of doing that."

But opposition on the ATP doubles tour can take many forms. At the recent event in Indian Wells, most of the top ten singles players were in the draw and Fleming and Hutchins lost a close first match to fellow Brits Andy and Jamie Murray.

"A couple of friends messaged me saying it must be annoying when these guys play," says Fleming, a graduate of Stirling University. "But I'm very much for it even though it makes it tougher for us to progress."

"It draws crowds, draws attention to doubles and the standard goes up" adds Hutchins, son of former GB player and coach Paul. "It's great for us to go head to head with them and see where we're at."

And of course there are the Olympics to look forward to. They hope. The cut for entries is likely to be perilously close to their combined ranking.

"We can only go on the ranking cut offs for the last two Olympics," says Hutchins. "And judging by that, we'd be in right now."

"You're allowed two teams per country [in a 32-team draw] and presuming Andy and Jamie play, we are right now the second team. We have to work very hard to defend the ranking points we made last year and be there on form and merit."

Just back from a long tour of the United States, Fleming and Hutchins will start favourites to win the doubles rubber on Saturday. Belgium - with their experienced singles players Olivier Rochus and Steve Darcis - are expected to edge the overall tie.

In the Tim Henman/Greg Rusedski days, when GB bounced between World Group first round and the play-offs, successive captains in David Lloyd and Roger Taylor cried out for a specialist doubles team. Or at least one other, to take some of the heat off the main men.

After they retired, the theory was different. Captains Jeremy Bates and John Lloyd preferred the option of two further singles players to compete for the second slot alongside Andy Murray.

Now, with Murray's involvement uncertain (although he has already committed to the next tie if it's a World Group play-off), Fleming and Hutchins are the first names on current captain Leon Smith's team sheet.

This is an important match at the end of an embarrassing week for the LTA when the Sport England "Active People Survey" reported a sharp drop in adult participation figures.

It's a major blow to those who have spent years claiming the game is growing in the UK and, with the LTA's funding cut as a result, a sharp reminder that no amount of spin or fancy figures can kid those who take a detached view.

Perhaps now the LTA will fully embrace the Tennis For Free scheme which has done superb work for years but has constantly found itself banging its charitable head against the gleaming Roehampton doors.

Campaigner Tony Hawks emails me today. Backed by politicians and Sport England, he says he plans to ask the LTA for funding to launch 88 Tennis For Free sites over four years. He fears they will turn this down.

If people turn up in Glasgow this weekend and get inspired by the likes of Fleming and Hutchins, they need to be able to get a taste for tennis at low cost, if possible no cost.

This is possible, if you go looking for it, but until the scheme is rolled out across the UK - with the LTA's backing and funding - the required participation increase to make us a serious tennis nation will surely never materialise.