• That wretched performance against Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final.
• That February/March swoon, including those cringe-inducing losses to a pair of "Jrs," Donald Young and Alex Bogomolov.
• His stall -- once again -- at Wimbledon, this time in the semis.
• The four spankings he endured at the Grand Slam events.
But if you look at the big picture, there were mitigating circumstances attached to all those disappointments, and 2011 may go down as a year in which Murray took a huge step forward -- and set the stage for a potential breakthrough in 2012.
First of all, keep in mind that in 2011, Murray faced the first true crisis of his pro career -- that terrible span following his dispiriting, straight-sets loss to Djokovic in the Australian Open final.
Nobody other than Djokovic won more titles on the ATP Tour this year than Murray, and his 4-1 win-loss record in finals includes triumphs at two Masters Series (Shanghai and Cincinnati, where Djokovic retired while losing to Murray) and a notable 6-0-in-the-third win over Rafael Nadal in Tokyo. But we're getting ahead of ourselves.
In retrospect, that hapless and helpless effort against Djokovic in Melbourne at the outset of 2011 doesn't look so awful. Djokovic spent the first nine months of the year bringing his rivals to their knees in like fashion.
We might have guessed what lie in store when Djokovic knocked off Nicolas Almagro, Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer in succession in Melbourne -- all in straight sets -- to get opposite an equally in-form Murray. But nobody could have predicted just how sharp, confident and fit Djokovic had become.
Murray seemed emotionally crushed by that painful straight-sets loss to Djokovic and went into a comprehensive funk over the ensuing weeks. He even lost his No. 4 ranking to Robin Soderling for a spell. But even those three straight losses looked less severe when you take into account that Marcos Baghdatis (defeated Murray at Rotterdam) is always dangerous, and Young and Bogomolov were, like Djokovic, in the early stages of career years.
The Euro clay did wonders for Murray's game, probably because he got to groove his game and find his rhythm in those long, rolling rallies. He was a new man by the French Open, even though he lost to Nadal in the semis. Who doesn't lose to Nadal at the French Open?
Murray won at Queens, firing hopes once again for the long-awaited British Wimbledon champ. Once again, the faithful were disappointed as Murray was beaten in the semis -- again by Nadal. Relegated to No. 2 by Djokovic, Nadal seemed to take his frustrations out on poor Murray, beating him yet again in the U.S. Open semis.
You know the rest: Murray caught fire and went on a remarkable tear, which was finally halted by Tomas Berdych in the quarters of the Paris Indoors. It was a four-title, 28-1 run going all the way back to the dog days of August, incorporating that win in Japan over Nadal.
You can wag your head and object that Djokovic and Federer were nowhere to be seen through much of that fall run, and everyone knows that Nadal isn't the best autumn warrior. But that's not my takeaway.
What I see in Murray's year is a quantum leap forward, because buried in all the drama of 2011 is the fact that Murray had by far his best year at Grand Slam events, including -- yes -- the Australian Open. The most pertinent and damaging criticism of Murray for years has been that he's not a two-week player -- and thus not a legitimate contender at the majors.
Murray showed in 2011 that he has the physical, mental and emotional stamina to contend at majors -- a final and four semis at the majors add up to a very, very good effort. If Murray has a problem now, it can be summed up in two words: Rafael Nadal.
If Murray can get that Spanish obstacle out of his road, the Wimbledon loyalists may yet see a British man hoist a singles trophy at a Grand Slam event for the first time in ages.
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