Murray in perfect shape to prevail

I shall leave a detailed analysis of Euro 2016 to next week, although it seems to me that England will never have a better chance and I am not at all put off by fairly ordinary performances in recent friendlies, which are nearly always best ignored. I find it quite astonishing that Wembley can sell out for a friendly but, in fairness, I have always been more of a club football man than an international one anyway.

Having watched Andy Murray in action at the French Open I was greatly taken by his performances as the tournament progressed and, as I mentioned last week, the correct move was to back him outright as a supporting wager to Kei Nishikori. The Japanese did not get as far as facing the Scot, losing rather tamely to Richard Gasquet. Murray then beat the latter so comfortably that you have some idea of the gap in class.

So we have another Murray-Djokovic final and I think Murray in this sort of form will win. Djokovic wants to come across as a lovable character but fails to do so and walking off the court the other day when he considered the rain too heavy to continue was both rude and arrogant. He left officials and the ultra-polite Tomas Berdych with little option but to go along with his wishes – or mood – and hope the rain would ease.

Djokovic has a fine record against Murray but sometimes recent form matters more and Murray was a clear winner in Rome. Analysing their matches is not that difficult. The very, very best of Djokovic will see him home, while anything less leads to muttering, minor tantrums and delays. For a surprisingly long time Murray let this get to him and paid the price but these days he turns up ready for anything. Furthermore, brilliant though both are when it comes to long, punishing rallies, Murray will not be the first to blink in Paris.

I don’t know how the bookies will bet but the prices will probably be closer this time than is often the case. If I were pricing this up I’d tempt people with Djokovic at 4/5 and I wouldn’t be going bigger than 11/10 about Murray. So, if he is quite a bit bigger than that, I have to play. I don’t like betting on the margin of victory, though I make it 3-1 to Murray.