There are certain behavioural traits that make a British sports fan distinct from foreign sport fans. An obvious example is the typical British football fan’s penchant for choosing to wear no top in the pouring rain and freezing cold. However, another obvious example is the British fan’s charming tendency to create unbelievable hype out of the smallest success.

Take Theo Walcott for instance. The day after scoring an admittedly impressive hat-trick in the World Cup qualifier against Croatia, Walcott was being hailed by the press as the ‘new David Beckham’: the much-needed saviour of English football. Sadly, this kind of exaggerated hype has caused some sportsmen to crack under the pressure.

Scott Carson’s less than solid performances in the England goal during recent years provide one such example. One cause of this phenomenon is perhaps the undeserved nature of the hype and excessive praise. Did Scott Carson ever deserve to be heralded by The Sun newspaper as ‘England’s No. 1’ after one or two average performances in an England shirt?

British football fans have been largely deprived of excitement this summer due to the failure of the home nations to qualify for the European Championships. However, the world of tennis has proved an apt substitute. Following Andy Murray’s US Open final showdown against Roger Federer, the country has gone Murray mad.

The hype surrounding the young Scot has now reached epic proportions. Former British number one, Tim Henman, has been outspoken in his belief that Andy Murray can soon “become number one in the world” and “win not just one Slam but multiple Slams”. Henman has also been quoted as saying, “Next time he plays a Slam – in Australia, where the conditions are really good for him – he’ll really believe he can go all the way and win that tournament”.

Is Andy Murray really deserving of such exaggerated compliments? At the tender age of 21, the young Scot is a relative newcomer to the world of professional tennis and still has a lot to prove.

This attitude has not been a popular one in Britain since Murray’s performances over the summer. In recent months The Sun newspaper has printed the following headlines on its website: ‘Murray will rule the world’, ‘Andy’s the 007 of world tennis’, ‘Andy win sparks ‘Murray mania’’, ‘Murray is the Win-cinnati kid’, ‘Murray is set to join the big fish’, ‘Andy is feeling just Grand’, ‘The one and only’, ‘Hero Andy through to US Open semi-final’.

These headlines have been replicated in most of Britain’s newspapers, particularly the tabloids, recently. However, one voice of reason has spoken out from the Telegraph. Kevin Garside, reporting from New York, recognises the “Murraymania” that has “washed over Britain like an Olympic aftershock, providing the nation with another inoculation against the credit crunch and sodden skies”.

Garside continues to state that “the euphoric after taste of victory over world No. 1 Nadal in Sunday’s delayed semi-final was beautiful while it lasted. It allowed us to believe for 24 hours at least that Murray might convert a grand slam opportunity at the first time of asking. Delusion is a wonderful thing”.

It is not just members of the British press who have raised concerns over the growing pressure and ridiculous hype being placed on the young shoulders of Andy Murray. Mats Wilander, former US Open Champion, believes that “Murray is a smart player”. However, Wilander has been far more realistic than Henman and a large proportion of the Great British public in his views concerning Murray’s immediate prospects, stating “he has reached number four in the world and I think he’ll stay up there”.

Tennis legend, Pat Cash, has similarly stated that although Murray has “shown himself as a real threat to the top three in the world”, there is “still a little gap between the top three and the rest, but Andy deserves to be number four, no doubt about that”. Henman’s opinion that Murray can win the next Grand Slam can be placed into perspective by Steven Martins, the player director of the Lawn Tennis Association. Martins believes that “it’s not inevitable that Andy will win a Grand Slam but it’s definitely not impossible”.

Austrian tennis player, Jurgen Melzer, is set to face Andy Murray in this weekend’s Davis Cup promotion tie. Melzer has stated his anxiety over Murray’s situation: “The whole country expects him to win the Davis Cup by himself. After playing such a great Grand Slam I think it’s tough to get your head clear and to focus for the next one and that’s the big thing. It’s a lot of pressure on his shoulders”.

The Davis Cup promotion tie against Austria will provide Murray with the perfect opportunity to prove these critics wrong. The player believes that he is personally capable of coping with the ever-increasing hype and pressure that has surrounded him since the US Open, stating “I’m confident I’ll be able to handle the pressure”.

When asked by a journalist whether he believed he could cope with the new weight of expectation on his shoulders, Murray sarcastically replied: “There’s so much pressure on me to play well – I don’t know if I’ll be able to deal with it”. Whether Murray’s confidence is misplaced or not remains to be seen in the long-term but Sunday’s match against Melzer is sure to provide interesting viewing in light of the Austrian’s recent comments.

You can follow Murray’s (and Britain’s) progress on BBC 1 and 2 over the weekend. Friday the 19th September sees Murray up against Peya, whilst Bogdanovic takes on Melzer. Play starts at 11.00am. Jamie Murray (and possibly Andy, depending upon the decision of British captain John Lloyd) will be involved in the doubles match against Melzer and Knowle on Saturday with play starting at 1.00pm, and Sunday sees Andy Murray compete against Melzer, with Bogdanovic playing against Peya. Sunday’s play starts at 11.00am.

Written by Charlotte Cook

For years the British public were put through the wringer each summer as Tim Henman tried to realise his and the nations dream of winning Wimbledon. These days it is Andy Murray who has that pressure around his neck.

We are into the second week of Wimbledon and he is still there. An impressive performance against the dangerous Tommy Haas on Saturday has really got people saying that this might be the year. His problems are twofold - they are called 'Rafael Nadal' and 'Roger Federer'.

These two stars of the game are both in tip-top condition despite Rafa calling for the trainer just now in the first set of his fourth round match. Nadal's form through the French Open and then winning his first grass court event at Queen's Club has shown the world that he is ready to take Federer on when it comes to grass.

Speaking of the Swiss world number one, Federer has looked beatable all year but since he's turned up at Wimbledon, he has looked like the old Federer. He hasn't been troubled at all and he looked like he's going to cruise through his half of the draw and make the final.

Murray has to go through Gasquet today, which isn't an easy game but up next would in most likelihood would be Nadal. Now that would be some game to watch and would really show whether or not Murray is ready to win a major.

Whatever happens it is yet another year of Murraymania and I bet my bottom dollar that we'll have exactly the same when Wimbledon comes around in 2009!