Murray under pressure to do well as LTA seek £30m boost

The Scot will be joined in first-round Wimbledon action in the men’s draw this afternoon by Jamie Baker and Surrey qualifier Chris Eaton, while the women will be represented by British No1 Anne Keothavong, Katie O’Brien and Naomi Cavaday.

Elena Baltacha offered some hope yesterday when she progressed to the second round in the women’s singles, but Melanie South and Alex Bogdanovic both crashed out in familiar fashion.

All the best: Aussie Lleyton Hewitt, a former Wimbledon winner, believes Andy Murray has an outside chance of winning SW19.

Without the use of wild cards only Murray, Keothavong and Eaton would have been playing at the tournament making it increasingly harder for the LTA to convince sponsors and the public alike that Britain is making strides in tennis.

Murray will be under even more pressure against Santoro because victory could push British tennis closer towards a much needed £30million sponsorship boost.

Success for Britain’s only world-class player is vital if the LTA is to clinch a four-year sponsorship deal for the sport.

Chief executive Roger Draper remains confident they can unearth a backer willing to support the sport through to the grass roots, but industry experts believe the sheer breadth of the deal is causing problems.

One expert said: 'The LTA need Murray to have a good run at Wimbledon because they have given themselves a really difficult job.

'They want an awful lot of money for that four-year deal, yet there is just Murray in the top 200 of the men’s game and we haven’t yet found a women’s player who can make a real impact.

'The major selling point for the deal is the naming rights for the Queen’s tournament — now that the Artois involvement has ended — along with corporate hospitality facilities at Wimbledon.

'The rest of the package is very difficult to value for any potential sponsor.'

Lleyton Hewitt believes Murray can cope with the expectation and beat Santoro.

The former champion trained with the Scot over the weekend and said: “He’s got an outside chance of doing well here and going into the second week of a Grand Slam tournament.”