Last updated 11:42, Wednesday, 25 June 2008

JUST as we had become accustomed to his superbrat antics, a new relaxed, fun-loving Andy Murray has been unleashed on Wimbledon.

I suspect it’s going to take a lot more than a new haircut, a big smile and a few chatty TV interviews for Murray to win over tennis fans.

It makes you wonder if the 21-year-old British No1 will ever be able to shake off his reputation as a stroppy youngster with a bit too much to say for himself.

That surly face, the fist-pumping and the snarling, not to mention the frequent temper tantrums and foul-mouthed outbursts on court, have turned Murray into someone the Pimms-drinking brigade regard as a pantomime villain.

The last time he played in SW19, he attracted a volley of abuse when he joked he would be supporting 'anyone but England' at the 2006 World Cup.

The comment was ill-advised, childish and plain stupid, and he did himself untold damage.

Then when he opted out of Great Britain’s Davis Cup team in January because of a recurring knee problem – only to resume his singles career two days later – he came across as a bad sport with a massively over-inflated view of his own self worth.

But, in the lead up to Wimbledon, he has tried to present himself in a different, much more soft-focused light.

First came the autobiography, Hitting Back, in which he tried to put right some of the misconceptions about him, claiming many of his unguarded comments early in his career had been distorted.

Then there have been a series of interviews, where he has chatted openly, laughed, joked and come across as everything his critics would have us believe he isn’t.

It’s a shame it has taken so long for Murray’s other side to emerge because he is our best hope of becoming the first British man to win the Wimbledon crown since Fred Perry in 1936.

He has done himself no favours but now is the time for tennis fans to forgive and forget and to give him a second chance to win to them over.

It is time to welcome Murray in from the cold and to will him to success.

Regardless of what you may think about him, he has still had a positive impact on tennis.

He has chipped away at the image that tennis is a stuffy sport purely for the middle classes – a reputation which has held British game back for generations because many working class kids fear they will be unwelcome at snooty tennis clubs or simply can not afford to join.

British tennis needs a role model and it needs a champion like never before to try to inspire the next generation.

Regardless of the improvements the Lawn Tennis Association may say are being made, the state of the British game is a disgrace.

This year, only two British men have been awarded wildcards into the main draw – No 260 Jamie Baker and No 271 Alex Bogdanovic – the lowest number since wildcards began in 1977.

If he is to ever become a champion, Murray still needs to retain his passionate character and allow the fire within him to burn, but he needs to control it so he doesn’t end up destroying himself.

He’ll never be whiter than white, but that doesn’t mean to say he can’t become a great champion, a crowd favourite and an inspiration to the next generation of tennis player.