British trio face tough battle

LONDON, June 23 (Reuters) Britain faces a galling anniversary at Wimbledon 2006 -- no British player has won the men's title for 70 years.

So could the magic of triple Wimbledon champion Fred Perry rub off on Scottish teenager Andy Murray or will it be 13th time lucky for Tim Henman, the perennial ''nearly man'' of tennis? Maybe Greg Rusedski, as famous for turning the hallowed Centre Court blue with his swearing as he is for his booming serve, could finally come good on the ultimate stage in tennis.

Murray, who reached Wimbledon's third round last year and then climbed 300 placings in the world rankings, has a sponsorship deal with the sportswear company set up by Perry. History, fans fervently hope, could come full circle.

With Wimbledon this year battling the World Cup for the attention of sports fans, the temperamental Murray wants to take a leaf out of Brazilian striker Ronaldinho's book.

''Ronaldinho is my favourite footballer. He just smiles regardless of what the score is or if he makes bad pass. I think that is something I have to try and get into my game a bit more,'' he said.

The gangly teenager, the target of much media hype which he has at times struggled to live up to, tries to deflate expectations, insisting grass is not his favourite surface and arguing that the U.S. Open is his best chance of a Grand Slam.

THIRD FAVOURITE Undeterred, one bookmaker has already made him 16-1 third favourite to win Wimbledon.

''I probably wouldn't bet on myself,'' was the terse reaction from Murray.

''That kind of shows that, regardless of what anybody says, if you are third favourite to win Wimbledon and you are ranked 45 in the world, then there's a lot of expectation on you. But it's just something you have to deal with.'' After seven years as Britain's number one, Henman certainly knows all about that pressure. He truly has the weight of a nation's hopes on his slender shoulders every summer.

Middle-aged matrons from England's genteel Home Counties worship Henman as the epitome of the middle class hero, politely egging him on with cries of ''Come on Timbo.'' Tabloids may mercifully mock ''Tiger Tim'' for lacking the killer instinct but he has reached four Wimbledon semi-finals, a record unmatched by any of his generation.

Henman, who has not won a tournament since the Paris Masters back in 2003, reached the semi-finals at last week's Queen's Club Stella Artois tournament and, despite his rage with some poor line calls, declared ''It's been a fantastic week. It gives me a great foundation to build from.'' On the Grand Slam front, Rusedski may have gone one better than Henman - he once reached the final of the U.S Open -- but he has never matched Henman's Wimbledon record.

Rusedski, the world number 37 has struggled to make his mark all season and has advanced to the third round only once in nine tournaments. Then he was forced to retire from his first round match at Queen's because of injury.

Henman has always been the darling of the crowds on the grassy knoll where spectators congregate to watch his Wimbledon matches on a big screen. It is fondly dubbed Henman Hill.

But this year, if the Scottish teenager can handle the pressure, it could be all change on the new Murray Field.

REUTERS PM PM0914