World number two Andy Murray believes he might not be the only British player to thrive at this year’s Wimbledon and has backed some of the other 14 local hopefuls to make their mark at the grass-court grand slam.
Murray, who has long been the sole focus of hopes of British success at the All England Club, is almost certain to reduce that number by one when he meets English wild card Liam Broady in the first round of the men’s singles.
Wild-card James Ward might not last long either, having drawn world number one Novak Djokovic.
• More: The National's predictions | 5 players to watch
Murray’s brother Jamie, however, will be looking for a second grand slam doubles title of the year with Brazilian Bruno Soares, while Dominic Inglot won a doubles title with Canadian Daniel Nestor in Nottingham earlier this month.
"With 15 British players involved in the singles competitions at Wimbledon this year and the recent success in doubles for my brother Jamie and Dominic Inglot, it does feel like there's a bit of a feelgood factor around British tennis at the moment," Murray wrote in a BBC column.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s not perfect, but this tournament is a big chance for some of them to make their mark and you just hope they do themselves justice, because it’s tough working your way up through the rankings.”
Among others from the country, British women’s number one Johanna Konta has been seeded 16th, while Heather Watson and Naomi Broady are in also in the women’s main draw.
Murray, who lifted a record fifth Queen’s title earlier this month, has been reunited with Ivan Lendl, the former Czech great who coached him to Wimbledon glory in 2013.
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WWE Super ShowDown results
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Finn Balor defeated Andrade to stay WWE Intercontinental Championship
Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns
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Randy Orton beats Triple H
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Kofi Kingston wins against Dolph Zigggler to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Mansoor Al Shehail won the 50-man Battle Royal
The Undertaker beat Goldberg
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
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ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
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Director: Matt Drummond
Stars: Alyla Browne, Alice Parkinson, Sam Everingham
Rating: 3/5
Other IPL batting records
Most sixes: 292 – Chris Gayle
Most fours: 491 – Gautam Gambhir
Highest individual score: 175 not out – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
Highest strike-rate: 177.29 – Andre Russell
Highest strike-rate in an innings: 422.22 – Chris Morris (for Delhi Daredevils against Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017)
Highest average: 52.16 – Vijay Shankar
Most centuries: 6 – Chris Gayle
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Fastest hundred (balls faced): 30 – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
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2). Roberto Soldado - Valencia - £25m: Flop
3). Erik Lamela - Roma - £25m: Jury still out
4). Son Heung-min - Bayer Leverkusen - £25m: Success
5). Darren Bent - Charlton Athletic - £21m: Flop
6). Vincent Janssen - AZ Alkmaar - £18m: Flop
7). David Bentley - Blackburn Rovers - £18m: Flop
8). Luka Modric - Dynamo Zagreb - £17m: Success
9). Paulinho - Corinthians - £16m: Flop
10). Mousa Dembele - Fulham - £16m: Success
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MATCH INFO
Al Jazira 3 (O Abdulrahman 43', Kenno 82', Mabkhout 90+4')
Al Ain 1 (Laba 39')
Red cards: Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain)