Andy Murray admits to feeling Wimbledon nerves and pressure every year

Andy Murray admits he gets nervous and feels the pressure before Wimbledon every year but believes he can win his third All England title this summer.

The world No 1 and defending champion will be in the opening match on centre court when the competition gets underway next Monday, and he has admitted that the yearly demands on him at his home tournament can be "stressful".

However, Murray is also looking forward to taking advantage of home comforts as he looks to win his third Wimbledon title, and says the pressure he feels around this time every year actually helps him to focus.

"It is nerve-racking, I get very nervous and I feel the pressure before Wimbledon every year," he told Sky Sports News.

"I think the first time I came back as defending champion it did feel a little bit different. I also wasn't playing well when I came in that year and I had had the back surgery not so long beforehand, so I'm thinking I'll deal with it a little bit better this year.

"Obviously you get to stay at home, I get to see my family, sleep in my own bed and that's nice because obviously as tennis players we are playing all over the world so it is quite rare for us to play a tournament and get to stay at home. That's nice.

"There are more demands on your time than other times of the year, but I do feel like the pressure and the spotlight also makes me concentrate more. I do find it stressful but I think it helps me concentrate better."

Murray will equal Fred Perry's three Wimbledon titles with a successful defence of his crown this year and, despite coming into the tournament in indifferent form, the Scot is confident he can do it.

"I want to try and win here another time if I can and I think there is a good chance that I could do it if I prepare properly and play well," he said.

"I love playing on grass, it has been my most successful surface in my career and if I could get to three it would be a great achievement."

The 30-year-old's spectacular form in the second half of 2016 propelled him above Novak Djokovic and into the world No 1 spot but he has failed to find the same consistency in tournaments so far this year.

However, he says being top of the rankings has not been a burden for him.

"No, it hasn't. I get asked about it every week but that hasn't been the case," Murray added. "I'd be happy to say if it was because it would also give me an excuse for why I maybe haven't played my best this year.

"I'm feeling much better right now than I was five or six weeks ago. I obviously had the problem with my elbow at Indian Wells, Miami and that slowed me down a little bit.

"Before then the Australian Open was a disappointment, but I played two other tournaments in that period and I lost in the final to Novak in Doha, I played well. I won the tournament in Dubai.

"I'm just starting to feel like I'm fit now. It is coming into an important period of the year and this is really where last year it all started for me, where I went on a great run so I'm hoping the same can happen again this year."

Andy Murray was speaking during his official Wimbledon trophy tour around the UK set up by Jaguar. For more information follow @JaguarUK.

For those on the move, we will have Wimbledon covered via our website skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad, or follow our Twitter account @SkySportsTennis to join in the conversation. Who will win the All England Club title this summer? Have your say...