After a sterling performance at Wimbledon, Andy Murray has moved up to No.9 in the world rankings. His five-set match against Frenchman Richard Gasquet was a classic and perhaps we have witnessed the stage where Murray finally turned into a man.

There is no doubting that he has the talent and drive to break into the top five but it’s his consistency that must be bettered now for the young Scot to achieve such lofty heights in the world of tennis.

As we all witnessed with brutal force, in terms of talent and natural ability, Roger Federer and new champion Rafael Nadal are on a different planet to the rest. Murray had no answer whatsoever to the demolition he took from Nadal in the quarter-finals. If Federer was finally broken by Nadal then what chance did Murray really have?

There is no shame in being defeated by those two greats. What Murray must focus on is honing his concentration and consistency to match the obvious training he has gone through in the gym. Murray has struggled for some time with injuries relating to growing up. He is a tall and gangly lad but is beginning to bulk up without losing his sharpness around the court.

However, comparing the footwork of Murray to that of Nadal is staggering. The Spaniard is no small fry – he is over six foot but does not look it. Murray is taller but his mobility, at times, can let him down. He cannot iron out all of these problems at once but by the time Murray reaches the grand old age of 24 we should see him at his best. This now seems to be the age where the men are hitting their peak. Federer was simply unstoppable at this age and Nadal has another two years to reach it. Unbelievable.

It’s amazing to think that this was Murray’s first Slam quarter-final. He did relish being in the spotlight and handled the attention quite admirably. He also turned a few sceptics into believers and his reception next year at Wimbledon, I’m sure, will be akin to what Tim Henman used to receive. Henman’s words of encouragement from the commentary box were vital for the television viewing public in also taking Murray to their hearts.

Murray is not perhaps as instantly likeable as Henman – there is a seemingly darker and broodier side to an arrogantly selfish young man. It’s not a typical British hero. He is a bit of an anti-hero. What’s wrong with that? Indeed, it is just this kind of persona who can win Major tournaments if harboured and prodded into positive reactions.

Outside of the top two only Novak Djokovic is a player with whom you wouldn’t bet on Murray beating consistently. The others, yes, I believe he can beat them on a regular basis to establish himself in that top five for years to come. As I said earlier, the key to Murray’s success is consistency. He will never be No.1, not while those three mentioned are around, but Murray can cement himself as the most successful male British tennis player of the modern era if he keeps up his rate of progress.