Another year, another failure. Perhaps fitting that Tim Henman should report sick for the commentary box on the day that Rafael Nadal swatted aside the challenge of Andy Murray. The torch has been passed but it seems that British men are destined to see the flame die before the ultimate prize can be won.

After the heroics of Monday night's triumph against Richard Gasquet comes the inevitable reality check. A divisive figure at the best of times, Murray will find the brickbats come thick and hard.

At the weekend the writer AS Byatt, a dame of this shrinking and divided empire, wrote Murray off as “obstreperously Scottish”. As a comment this is as offensive as Murray's “anyone but England” line that Byatt, that curmudgeonly holder of grudges, no doubt felt justified her attack. Many would agree with her, no matter that Murray's comment was a joke aimed at Tim Henman who was in the room at the time.

Not being Henman has built an invisible but very real barrier between Murray and the inhabitants of Henman Hill. That barrier shook to its foundations on Monday. It will be as strong as ever after this Nadal crushing.

I'm unsure why the Murray backlash has been so strong. It's clear that Murray ain't Henman. But Sampras and McEnroe were chalk and cheese yet they were still loved by America. Rod Laver and Lleyton Hewitt are not cut from the same cloth but are Aussie heroes. Closer to home Nick Faldo was “obstreperously” everything during an unloved career – but we still wanted him to win.

All this is a mere smokescreen of course. The real story is whether Murray, love him or loathe him, can move forward now. The plain statistic is simple: A Grand Slam quarter-final is an improvement. The next step is to make sure quarter-finals are a regular, and minimum, achievement at the big events.

Forget for a moment Nadal and Federer. They are a distance ahead of the rest and seem set to turn this summer into the tennis version of Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus' Duel in the Sun at Turnberry in 1977. The very best of the very best swatting away the field and then going head to head. That's brilliant for the spectator but it leaves the players trailing in their wake going simply for the title of best of the rest.

And that's where Murray now finds himself. Changes in attitude and fitness have proved that he can beat lesser opponents with ease. That attitude and fitness, combined with the stubbornness that he has always had in spades, saw him get past Gasquet. That, in turn, proves that he can live with his immediate peers in the rankings.

So the next logical step is the top five and an attempt to steal the crown of Novak Djokovic. At the moment Djokovic is the man who can claim to be the best of the rest. In the last year the Serb has left Murray, his near contemporary, trailing in his wake. But they have had very different Wimbledons: Murray's defeat by Nadal should have left him hungry for another crack at doing himself justice on the bigger stage, Djokovic's tame capitulation to Marat Safin will have left him wondering just what went wrong.

The momentum might not be right back with Murray but if he builds on the past fortnight it might just begin to swing his way. The top five is the least he must target. He may well manage that with a strong US Open. The next target is Djokovic - that should be within his reach. He still has more to offer - and much to learn - but the tweaks and improvements we have seen this week show that he can still develop, that there is much more potential there.

Anyone watching the thrilling denoument of the Gasquet match saw a man who will not be content just to reach quarter-finals. He may never be a Federer or a Nadal - who will? - but he can, and will, be a top-five player.

His image might be more troublesome - to those who say he should smile more I would suggest that it didn't do that other much-derided Scot Gordon Brown much good. He could be more approachable, and he could also ban his mother from his entourage. But, if his image doesn't really bother him, then he shouldn't worry about it.

Right now Murray has the world at his feet. If he continues to improve like he is threatening to do then it might be us Brits that have some growing up to do. Can we learn to love an obstreperous winner like we love a mild-mannered loser?