Andy Murrays rise to the top of the rankings this fall has been a surprising tale containing numerous improbable elements. So its hardly shocking to discover that in his own eyes, not playing has had as much to do with Murrays spectacular results as his exploits on the court.Ive managed my rest and recovery periods much better, Murray told ESPNs Darren Cahill on Friday, following Murrays tidy, 6-4, 6-2 win against Stan Wawrinka in the final round of round-robin play in the ATP World Tour Finals. In the past, after a tournament or a loss, I would get right back out there on the court to play, or to practice.Its different now. After Murray won the Paris Masters 1000, he explained he resisted the impulse to pick up a racket for four days during the week before the World Tour Finals. He also laid aside his sticks for a week after he won the Shanghai Masters. It could not have been an easy decision for Murray to take, because he owes a great deal of his success to his work ethic.Murray has a well-earned reputation as a workaholic. If youve known anyone like that, you know how much comfort they take in the sheer act of working. How secure it makes them feel. But what if the work isnt paying off, or its become just a hedge against feeling inadequate?Changing his work habits could not have been an easy decision for Murray to make. But he took the plunge. The successful result is further proof of Murrays reputation as a man who has left no stone unturned in his quest for greatness. In having the confidence and poise to try that somewhat counter-intuitive change, the 29-year-old Scot set himself up to equal the best winning streak of his career (22 matches) with this win over Wawrinka. More importantly, Murray positioned himself for a showdown with Novak Djokovic this weekend for the year-end No. 1 ranking.I feel good, Murray said, despite a season workload that has produced a 76-9 singles record and eight titles. Obviously, Ive played a lot, but my body is just conditioned to matches.Murrays mind is similarly steeled to the task at hand. It can be dispiriting to be frowned upon by the gods of the draw while a rival seems to get a path to a semi or final as slick as a luge run. This week, the seemingly smooth ride was offered to Djokovic, whose cumulative record against the three other men in his round-robin portion was a perfect 23-0.That might have been especially discouraging for Murray, because of his already mediocre record at the O2 Arena coming in. Despite having nine previous chances to crack the World Tour Finals code, he was just 11-11 -- and never a finalist. His own draw this year was brutal: Murray was 27-12 against Marin Cilic, Kei Nishikori and Wawrinka.But Murray did more than survive; he flourished. He made a powerful statement in locking down the three Ws in round-robin play this year, because hes also been forced to march in lockstep with Djokovic all the way. Whoever does better in this tournament will take that grand prize, the top ranking.Murrays win against Wawrinka was deft, swift and critical. He accomplished it in 1 hour, 25 minutes, avoiding the kind of knockdown, drag-out battle he survived with Nishikori in the second round. It means Murray, who unlike Djokovic will not get a day off before the semifinals, ought to recover more easily and have sufficient spring in his legs.Murray is entitled to feel like hes gotten over the hump, even though his job is far from finished. He seems to have come to grips with the pressure he faces from his fellow British countrymen annually at the O2 arena. He also has a right to feel hes got the upper hand on his three potential rivals, starting with Saturdays semifinal opponent, Milos Raonic.If Murrays success makes Djokovic slightly uneasy or makes him wish he were better prepared for the semifinals, its an earned bonus.Murray was a juggernaut entering this event, and he remains one just two matches from its conclusion. On Friday, Murray broke a string during the first point of the final game. He played on, hitting three slice backhands, a lob and a slice approach before Wawrinka ended the point with a passing-shot winner. Its almost unheard of for a player to construct such a point through so many shots with a racket thats essentially unraveling in his hand.But thats the kind of year Murray has had, and its difficult not to read the incident as an omen. Swell Water Bottle Australia . The formidable trio of Canadian receivers -- individually known as Chris Getzlaf, Rob Bagg and Andy Fantuz -- will share the field at Mosaic Stadium one more time on Sunday. Swell Bottle Stockists Australia . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. http://www.swellbottleaustralia.com/australia-swell-water-bottle-sale.html .ca. Kerry, Just watched the shootout in the Coyotes/Leafs game and I have to ask, why was the James van Riemsdyk goal allowed to count? All of the video replays we were shown on TV were inconclusive about whether the puck had entirely crossed the line or not. Swell Water Bottle 17 Oz . The players spoke Jan. 13 during a Major League Baseball Players Association conference call after Rodriguez sued the union and Major League Baseball to overturn an arbitrators decision suspending him for the 2014 season and post-season. Swell Marble Bottle Australia . The showiest items on Calgarys lot were forwards Mike Cammalleri and Lee Stempniak. Both will be unrestricted free agents this summer. MEXICO CITY, Mexico -- Kevin Magnussen says cockpit visibility with a Halo protection device attached is not as good as he had hoped.Magnussen was among five drivers testing the latest prototype of the head protection system during FP1 at the Mexican Grand Prix and was asked for his thoughts after the session.Im not a big fan, he said. It feels weird to have something in front of you. It is like having a cap [with the brim] pulled down really far. You can see where you are walking, but you cant see anything else. I dont like it.The visibility is not as good as I hoped. So I think at tracks where there is elevation it is going to be a problem.Magnussens Renault caught fire during practice for the Malaysian Grand Prix last month, highlighting concerns raised about Halo restricting a drivers ability to get out of the car. Asked if he tried an extrication test, Magnussen said: Yes. I dont know the time, but it didnt feel as easy.Im sure we all have our own opinion, but my opinion is that there are perhaps other things that need to be looked at before something like a halo or a closedd cockpit or a canopy screen or whatever.ddddddddddddagnussen believes F1 should continue to work on the safety initiatives it introduced following Jules Bianchis fatal accident at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix, as well as considering bringing back more gravel traps in run-off areas.What we have done with the Virtual Safety Car when there are trucks on the track is very good, he said. And anyway that accident with Jules would not have been any different if he had had a halo.So I think the halo would work in a situation if you had a wheel hit the head or maybe a nose cone, which is what happened with Justin Wilson [in IndyCar], but in F1 there are other things that need changing first.I would have preferred in Spa [when Magnussen had a high-speed accident at Eau Rouge] to have gravel instead of tarmac runoff, because when you are going backwards and sideways for sure you prefer to have gravel. So I think there are other things we need to focus on first. ' ' '