Stockport’s Liam Broady must relish the opportunity to test his mettle against Andy Murray on Wimbledon’s Centre Court on Tuesday, according to the Scot’s mother Judy.
World number 235 Broady’s draw against the British number one makes the task of matching his second round performance from 12 months ago at Wimbledon extremely tough.
The pair have never met before but former Wimbledon boy’s doubles champion Broady, 22, will have a licence to swing against his more illustrious opponent when they take to Centre Court on Tuesday.
“He cannot curse the draw, it is an opportunity to play one of the best players in the world,” said Judy Murray, who was speaking on behalf of HSBC, the Official Banking Partner of The Championships.
“Where he is in the rankings, in the events he is currently playing in, he wouldn’t get the chance to play any of the top players.
“So in terms of testing himself against one of the best players in the world, he has to see that as a good opportunity.
“He has absolutely nothing to lose, he can go out and swing.
“It is interesting how players react when they do get the opportunity to go on a big stage, some people freeze and some people fight, it will be interesting to see how he handles it.”
Liam’s 26-year-old sister Naomi is currently ranked 83 in the world and Judy Murray is backing the big-serving sibling to continue her rise up the rankings.
She plays the 17th seed Elina Svitolina in her first round match but Murray believes Naomi Broady has a good chance of overcoming the Ukrainian.
“She has largely got herself there through her own resources so I have a lot of time for her and the journey she has gone on to get herself there,” she added.
“She is 6’2”, she has one of the biggest serves in the women’s game, so on a surface like grass she could be very tough to play against if she serves well.
“I think Svitolina is not comfortable on grass, she is a very solid baseliner so it is quite a good match up for Naomi.
“She needs her first serve to be going consistently well and also needs to use her slice in coming forwards to the net.
“I think on grass, in the early rounds, anything is possible, and Svitolina does not like grass.”
The Broady siblings are two of 15 Brits in first round action at Wimbledon and Judy Murray feels last year’s Davis Cup win has given belief to the lower ranked players.
World number 706 Marcus Willis bolted through qualifying to shock everyone and make the main draw for the first time and Judy Murray feels Britain’s success is inspiring a generation of new fans.
“The buzz that it created sent a wave of belief across all the players and in perhaps the lower rankings, that anything is possible,” Judy Murray said.
“The Davis Cup has provided huge inspiration, not just for the British players but for fans all across the country too.
“I think it brought in a new wave of fans getting behind the team, it’s always much easier to get behind a team than perhaps it is an individual.”
Judy Murray is an HSBC ambassador. HSBC is the Official Banking Partner of The Championships and is committed to supporting tennis from the back garden to Centre Court. Follow @HSBC_Sport
