Will Tim be worth the wait?

No pressure Timbo, but, on your performance, this country rises or falls. Wonder if he realises?

Wimbledon is so much more than a tennis tournament. It's strawberries and cream, it's rain and shine, it's a social metaphor for everything good and proper. It's quintessentially English, a hardy perennial which has become synonymous with the country's psyche. It's shaped the nation and helped make British bulldogs out of us all, not because we've enjoyed so much success there, but because we haven't.

Fred Perry will be just a brand of sportswear to most youngsters today. But the unbranded version was actually a British tennis player of some repute. More than that; in 1936 he won the Wimbledon men's singles title and was the last Brit to do so. Two years later, Bunny Austin hit the centre court again for Britain for the final match of the singles tournament, but lost.

And since then the nation has pinned its hopes on false dawns, such as Roger Taylor, who never made it past a semi-final, John and David Lloyd, Jeremy Bates and Buster Mottram - all underwhelming in their on-court achievements. The women have faired much better. Who can forget Virginia Wade's sterling performance during the Queen's silver jubilee year, 1977, when she won the ladies' final. Then there was Sue Barker, Jo Drury, Annabel Croft - all contenders for glory. And their failures became our failures. And when they bounced back the following year, we bounced back with them.

"It's made people very resilient," says principal lecturer in psychology at Northumbria University, Sandy Wolsson. "People don't find losing terribly surprising and it's not the end of everything because there's always the next tournament, always another Wimbledon. People hope next year their players will do even better.

'And, overall, competitions have a very positive outcome on the national mood. It's called basking in reflected glory. People identify with victory. They feel a surge of pride which causes them to be in a better mood and feel more optimistic. If Henman continues to win, it will have an enormous impact on the country."

Tennis World, at Marton, Middlesbrough, already feels the effect, reporting a huge increase in the number of people booking courts. "As long as there's a British player in there, there's massive interest," a spokesman says: "We are just hoping and praying he reaches the final."

But the public has had a long time to wait for a decent men's player and all hopes are pinned on the boy Henman - now 27, of course, and a boy no longer. In Henman rests all things nice about the sport. His clean-cut image is very lawn tennis club. His control of his emotions matches that of his racquet. He's polite and well-mannered, countless mothers would love him to marry their daughters. 'Tim we love you', read the banners and the nation does because he's lovely - and that's why he'll probably lose, if not today, in his fourth Wimbledon semi-final, then on Sunday in the final.

"We have a different temperament. We play the game for the game's sake, other countries - like America and Australia - play to win," says Father John Caden, parish priest of St John Fisher, Sedgefield, a tennis fanatic and, for many years, Prime Minister Tony Blair's doubles partner.

"It would be a great achievement if he got into the final, but whether he has the temperament, I don't know. It's 63 years since we have had a man in the final, longer since Fred Perry won. That's a lot of pressure on Henman. It takes a tremendous amount of self-belief and you have to have a killer instinct. Potentially, he could be the best in the world, but because he is English and there's been so much pressure on him to succeed since he was young, it will be interesting to see if he copes.

"Our home-grown players have to cope with so much, they never achieve in front of their own crowd. So I won't be watching. I seem to jinx Henman. It's only when I stop watching that he pulls round."

What also pulls Henman round is the backing of the crowd. When he was a set down to Todd Martin in the quarters at the break of play, he rallied the following day thanks to the collective will power, screams and applause of his British fans. It flicked a switch in his mind which allowed his body to do justice to his fitness and ability.

It proved that, at the highest level, there is so little to choose between any of the top players. Injuries aside, they all operate at the peak of fitness. It's the mind that lets them down. Winning is a mind thing. So training the mind and increasing motivation and focus is now given equal importance to physical training in modern sport.

Successful sporting nations such as the US and Australia initially led the world in recognising that, having the mental will to win, coupled with talent and physical ability, gave the vital edge in turning athletes into champions.

Britain and Europe are finally catching up on the idea. Sport England is spending £120m on a network of centres, each manned by a sports psychologist.

Spokesman Matt Horler says: "Sports psychology is now a major factor in performance and training. There is no point having a physically finely-honed and tuned athlete who suffers nerves so badly he cannot perform at his best. Where it is necessary, it needs to be applied and can be crucial to success."

Sports psychologist and Olympic gold medallist in rowing Dr Kirsten Barnes who helped the British Olympic team prepare for the Sidney Games, says: "It simply can make the difference between success and failure. This is particularly true at the top level where, frequently, very little separates athletes in terms of ability or talent. What each and every competitor is looking for is that extra edge. You would be very foolish as an athlete, particularly at the top levels, to ignore it. Preparing and training your mind is as important as preparing your body. It is vital that sportsmen and women know how to relax, how to focus, how to channel nervousness effectively, and how to cope with adversity and failure and make it work for them."

Consultant sports psychologist Jack Lamport-Mitchell, who has coached top sportsmen including world champion boxers, adds: "Undoubtedly, sports psychology can help remove mental barriers that stop people succeeding. To be a winner, you have to believe you are a winner. It is all about perception. All too often, people impose limitations on themselves by a lack of self-belief, lack of confidence, nerves. Often, they will relate their past experiences, past failures. I tell them I am not interested in what they didn't do. I want to hear their achievements and then work with them in the present.''

Are you listening, Tim? And if you are and you win the final, the whole country will come to a standstill as it rejoices in one of the biggest sporting achievements since the England football team won the World Cup in 1966. So, like I say, no pressure Tim.