Andy Murray welcomes increased British presence at Wimbledon this year

As Andy Murray gets ready to take on Fabio Fognini in the third round at Wimbledon on Friday (7 July), he is joined by a lot more of his compatriots at this stage of the event than usual.

Fellow Brits Johanna Konta, Aljaz Bedene and Heather Watson are also in the third round and if all four are successful, it would be the first time since 1975 that four home players had reached the fourth round.

"It's a good thing when there are more Brits around," Murray said, as quoted in The Times. "That's a really positive thing, but it doesn't change how I go into the matches.

"I'm used to having played deep into the second weeks at slams and there not being any Brits there."

"Whether I'll feel differently in the middle of the second week and there are a few Brits left, and it's maybe a little bit calmer, that's possible. I've never been in that position before."

Bedene has echoed Murray's sentiments, stating that he "feels part of something bigger" despite recently being involved in a nationality row with Dan Evans.

"Everybody has got to focus on themselves but I feel part of something bigger," the Slovenia-born Bedene added, who takes on Gilles Müller in his third round clash. "It is amazing to see so many Brits in the third round."

As for Konta, she now finds herself as the favourite in the women's singles at Wimbledon following the exit of Karolina Pliskova.

Having made history earlier in the year by becoming the first British women to win the Miami Open, this could be her best chance of winning a first Grand Slam, especially with the absence of Serena Williams.

"There's definitely more awareness of us in this fortnight," British number one Konta explained, who faces Maria Sakkari next.

"I do not try to go out too much. However, I guess, like with any tournament, the time I have to really do stuff is quite limited anyway, so I am enjoying just staying at home, chilling out and making muffins."

While Murray is the most likely out of the four to progress to the next round, it's not a guarantee either as he faces Fognini, who notably has a 3-3 record against the Briton and recently knocked him out of the Italian Open in May.

But despite an injury-ridden and inconsistent year, the world number one seems to thrive when he's the underdog.

"Throughout the course of a year you need to have the motivation to want to be the best or to want to win tournaments, want to train hard, all of those things," Murray stressed.

"But there are different stages in the year where someone says that you can't do something or people think that you're struggling or you might be coming towards the end."

"Those things, at different stages, they can help. Like before the French Open, when I'm in a 'terrible' place in terms of my game and I'm not playing well, having that little bit of extra motivation can help."