Starting on December 7—the 25th day left in 2010—TENNIS.com will countdown from the year-end No. 25 on both tours with "The Last Word," a look back at the year that was and a look ahead at the season to come. Here's who we've looked at so far.
Best of 2010
Murray has set the bar of expectations high enough that this could be looked at as a disappointing season, despite some excellent results. While he won two Masters titles, it was his runner-up finish at the Australian Open, which included a scintillating win over Rafael Nadal, that was most impressive.
Worst of 2010
The worst came right after the best. Murray handled Roger Federer twice this season without much trouble, but when it mattered most, in Melbourne, he didn’t have his best.
Year in Review
Murray looks at the big picture, and when you look at it from there he had a strong 2010. Finalist in Australia, semis at Wimbledon, back-to-back wins over Nadal and Federer in Toronto, a blowout win over Federer in Shanghai, and a classic battle with Nadal in the semis in London. But you also get the feeling that Murray is a little too big picture. He still couldn’t raise his game, a la Federer and Nadal, when he really needed it. How many of those classic losses can he take before he starts to wonder if he’ll ever win one of them?
See for Yourself
Murray pushed Nadal to the brink at the World Tour Finals:
The Last Word
It’s hard to make predictions when it comes to Murray. He swings between promise and disappointment every couple of months. There’s a Slam in his game somewhere, but his best hope is still someone else taking out Rog or Rafa for him.
—Steve Tignor