LONDON (Reuters) - Andy Murray said on Saturday he felt the grass at Wimbledon was playing faster than before which should help his chances in the tournament starting on Monday.

Murray, seeded 12 and with the expectations of the home crowd on his shoulders following the retirement of Tim Henman, enjoys quicker surfaces and said the outside courts he had practised on were green and slick.

"The last couple of days I played on the match courts and they were quicker..., so I'm liking that. It's much better," the 21-year-old Scot told a news conference after a training session. He said they were also faster than at Queen's warm-up tournament last week.

Murray has had disappointing results on slow clay and lost in the third round to Spain's Nicolas Almagro at the French Open three weeks ago.

He missed last year's grass season with a wrist injury and pulled out of his quarter-final at Queen's with a sore thumb but said coming into Wimbledon he felt better than ever before.

"I do think I'm in the best shape that I've been going into a slam," he said, adding he had been travelling with a fitness trainer and physiotherapist to keep him on form.

Murray said he did not worry about the pressure of playing at his home grand slam, where no British man has won for more than 70 years, but he made sure he did not read what newspapers were saying about him.

"The buildup to it is difficult," he said. "But once you get on court, it's the last thing that you're thinking about...and you get awesome support when you're out there."

Murray, who reached the fourth round here in 2006, kicks off his campaign against 35-year-old Frenchman Fabrice Santoro, who played his first Wimbledon 18 years ago and whom he beat indoors in Paris last year.

"He's a tricky guy to play against," Murray said. "You need to stay focused the whole time because he tries everything."

(Editing by Dave Thompson)