FanHouse Andy Murray

The NHL season is almost upon us. That means the weather is getting colder, leaves are falling off trees and coaches are ever closer to getting the proverbial axe. Last year, it took only four games for the Chicago Blackhawks to fire Dennis Savard. The Penguins let Michel Therrien go with 25 games left in the season and it was just what the doctor ordered. The team went 18-3-4 under Dan Bylsma the rest of the season on their way to a Stanley Cup victory. Here, I'll be taking a look at the coaches most likely to end up like Savard -- coaches who are starting the season on the hot seat.

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NEW YORK -- This one is just baffling. A lot of people picked Andy Murray to win the U.S. Open. John McEnroe said to take an Andy, Murray or Roddick.

Murray has been on the rise, the classic, traditional rise. Get to a major final, lose. Figure out what's wrong, fix it. Everything was set for him to win his first grand slam.

And then on Tuesday, he disappeared. He lost to Marin Cilic, a young up-and-comer, 7-5, 6-2, 6-2. But when I say he disappeared, I'm not talking about from the draw.

Andy Murray went blank. The No. 2 ranked player in the world was trying to show that he's a champion that belongs in the discussion with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. And he simply, mentally went away after the first set.

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NEW YORK(AP) -- That upward-pointing arrow defining Andy Murray's career flattened out dramatically Tuesday.

The British star, who had ascended to a No. 2 ranking, was ousted from the U.S. Open by No. 16 Marin Cilic, 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 -- a lopsided result as surprising for its score as they player he lost to.

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The U.S. Open starts Monday, and there's no reason to wait the whole two weeks just to see what questions the tournament will answer. We already have the answers, and it works out so neatly: 10 questions, 10 answers.

1. Will Rafa's knees get him through the tournament?

This is the big one. And in the long run, tennis needs Rafael Nadal to keep fighting Roger Federer, the best individual rivalry in sports. But it's hard to get a straight answer out of Rafa. In Cincinnati, a week and a half ago, he finally admitted to me that his knees still hurt, and that it was hard to get in position to attack, which is necessary on the hard courts.

MONTREAL (AP) -- Andy Murray has overtaken Rafael Nadal in the ATP rankings, becoming the first British man to reach No. 2.

Roger Federer is still No. 1 in Monday's rankings. Murray's Rogers Cup title in Montreal last week moved him up to No. 2 for the first time, while Nadal is now No. 3 after being ranked No. 1 from August 2008 through June 2009.

I have never seen such pain in an athlete's eyes. Did you see Andy Roddick's eyes, wide open, and something deep pleading to come out?

"No," he said to the crowd afterward, "I'm one of the lucky few that gets cheered for."

And he thanked the fans.

Yes, Roger Federer had just won Wimbledon. He beat Roddick 5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 16-14 Sunday for his record-breaking 15th major title.

That's right, the last set was 16-14, or 10 games longer than any previous fifth set in a major. Turns out that while this wasn't quite the drama or quality of last year's final, Rafael Nadal didn't have to be here for a classic Wimbledon. Instead, Pete Sampras, who had won 14 majors, was there. And Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg. History came together to watch history being made.

America finally has a new men's tennis star.

Andy Roddick.

I know, he's been around forever. But now he's for real. Finally, he has a strategy and a coach and a brain and some actual footwork and speed. And even a backhand. Finally, he's not just a serve, not just a one-stroke gimmick with an empty head.

And finally, he is back in the Wimbledon finals. Roddick won the Battle of Andys Friday, beating Scotland's Andy Murray 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (7-5) in the Wimbledon semifinals, and crushing Great Britain's hopes for the first Brit champ since 1936.

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Revenge. It's the perfect time for the Williams Sisters, particularly for Serena. Who's No. 1? Dinara Safina? Right. So Serena has grumbled about it, saying everyone knows that's she's the real No. 1.

Well, now Venus and Serena are dominating Wimbledon. Venus will beat Safina in the semis on Thursday. And if Serena wins this thing over her sister (I'll take Venus), then the grudge is over. Serena is the champ and
No. 1.

Well, not quite. Safina is going to stay No. 1. But here's the weird thing: No matter what happens, Safina's lead in the computer rankings is going to increase. Does this compute? If Safina loses in the semis, and Serena wins the title, then that will be enough for Safina to pad her lead.

Huh?

Mount Murray was packed. Hundreds of people, maybe thousands, who knows? It was pitch dark Monday night, and they all sat together, watching the Great Brit Hope, Andy Murray, on the big-screen outside Centre Court.

Inside, Murray played Stanislas Wawrinka under the new roof. It was the first full match ever played under that roof, closed because of the rain during the previous match. And it was awe-inspiring to the crowd in itself, and the Queen had already written Murray a note wishing him luck, and she's expected to be there if he gets to the final, and the match went to a dramatic fifth set, and it was just so many things all at once.

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WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- Andy Murray has completed another comfortable win to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon, beating Viktor Troicki of Serbia 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.

Murray saved the only break point he faced in the match on Saturday and hit 37 winners, sealing the win with an ace.