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I fear failure more than my rivals - Murray

Andy Murray: 'It will be different the next time I get into a grand slam final' © Getty Images

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Andy Murray believes he is on the verge of making a major breakthrough, and insists he has what it takes to break his grand slam duck.

Murray, who has won three of the last four tournaments he has entered, heads to the ATP World Tour Finals in London looking to end the year on a high.

Murray's hat-trick of victories in the Far East in the autumn saw him overtake Roger Federer in the world rankings for the first time, and the Scot believes that is an indication of his progress this year.

After losing the Australian Open final to Novak Djokovic in straight sets, Murray suffered a slump in form, suffering three back-to-back defeats as he struggled to put a third grand slam final defeat behind him.

But despite that blip, Murray became only the seventh player in the Open era to reach the semi-finals of all four majors in a single season, and the British No. 1 believes he has never been closer to grand slam glory.

"Getting from [world] No. 20 to five seems a bigger step than four to three, but the closer you are to top spot, the bigger the leap," Murray told the Daily Mail. "It felt huge to move up this year because I knew it was such a significant improvement. It will be different the next time I get into a grand slam final.

"After the US Open I sat down with the guys in my team and said now is the time to be totally serious, totally focused, because I've never felt closer to making that breakthrough. In tennis, it is not the opponent you fear, it is the failure itself, knowing how near you were but just out of reach.

"I think I will be able to control my emotions better next time I am in that position; I feel mentally stronger, I feel comfortable. I am as high about my game now as I was low after the Australian Open this year. This is where I want to be and I've got to keep it up."

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