Two years ago, Andy Murray proved to be the long-awaited, homegrown Men's Singles Champion of Wimbledon that so many British fans had hoped for.  In spite of being the man to end that drought, however, Murray will enter this year's Championships still firmly under the microscope with the hopes of entire nation squarely on his shoulders as he attempts to win Wimbledon for the second time.  As has so often been the case throughout his career, he will face stiff competition in his quest to delight the home crowd, but Murray has put himself back in the position of a title contender heading into the year's third major.  

Prior to the start of this year, most would have thought that Murray's chances of winning Wimbledon, or any of the four Grand Slams this season for that matter, were remote.  The current No. 3 underwent minor back surgery towards the end of 2013 and had struggled to find his championship form ever since.  Further complicating matters was his play against Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.  His recent record against those three particular players had become so poor that fans and analysts were reverting to talking about the Big Three as opposed to the Big Four, with Murray once again finding himself the odd man out, just as he had been before capturing his maiden major at the 2012 US Open.

Things began to turn around in 2015, however.  Murray had a very solid first quarter, reaching the finals of both the Australian Open and the Miami Masters, as well as the semifinals of Indian Wells.  Although he lost to Djokovic at all three events, he severely tested the Serb in two of those three losses, and the positives he was able to take away from those close encounters paid dividends during the clay-court swing.  The Scot had never before won a title on the dirt, yet he was able to string together back-to-back tournament wins in Munich and the Madrid Masters, routinely defeating Nadal in the final of the latter event.  He backed up those performances by reaching the final four of Roland Garros, where he mounted a spirited comeback against Djokovic before ultimately falling short in five sets.  His semifinal exit in Paris may have marked the end of Murray's most successful stint on the clay, but he also left the French capital secure in the knowledge that he was finally starting to play the familiar brand of tennis that could garner him another major title.

His success on the clay is not the only factor that has contributed to making Murray look like an increasingly attractive candidate for Wimbledon champion though.  The transition to grass alone should bode well for his confidence.  Grass has traditionally been a more lucrative surface for the Scot and is better suited to is style of play.  In addition to that, Murray has arguably worked himself into a more favorable position heading into the third major of 2015 than many of his nearest rivals.  He is one of just a handful of active players to have the valuable experience of knowing what it takes to win a Grand Slam, and more specifically, what it takes to win seven consecutive matches at Wimbledon.  He has repeatedly shown himself to be more consistent than fellow Grand Slam champions Stanislas Wawrinka and Marin Cilic, as well as young guns like Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic.  Additionally, in recent months Federer has not looked quite as sharp has he did at the start of the season, while Nadal has struggled to tap into his best tennis all year.  If this pattern continues to hold true, Murray should arrive at SW19 as one of the heavier favorites behind Djokovic.

Naturally, arriving as a favorite and actually living up to that label are two different things.  Time is needed to determine whether or not Murray will deliver on that status, but considering where he was a year ago, there is no denying that he has done well to put himself back in the mix.  Hopefully he can continue to build on his fine form, and if he does, a third major title might be right around the corner.