If there ever was a doubt that Andy Murray was at the end of his playing career after an emotional sendoff at Wimbledon, he made it clear today.
“Arrived in Paris for my last ever tennis tournament,” he said. “Competing for Team (Great Britain) have been by far the most memorable weeks of my career and I’m extremely proud to get to do it one final time!”
Murray, 37, will compete in Paris looking to catch lightning in the bottle and finish on the medal stand, once again. Murray is a two-time Olympic gold medalist having defeated Roger Federer in the final of the 2012 games in London, and bested Juan Martin Del Potro in the 2016 games to defend that title.
It would be a fitting end to a stellar career that was overshadowed in large part because of the names Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. But the Brit was able to crack their armor successfully enough to win 3 grand slam titles (2 at Wimbledon, and 1 at the US Open). He, also, finished runner-up a remarkable 5 times at the Australian Open. Add the two Olympic gold medals, and he put together quite the career.
(photo via X/Twitter)
During what will go down as the greatest era of men’s tennis, it is hard to overstate the significance of winning Wimbledon for Murray, not once, but twice. In 2013, he defeated Novak Djokovic in straight sets to become the first Brit to claim the title since Fred Perry in 1936. Murray recently mentioned his relief from winning this title, underscoring the pressure.
“After I won it was just relief,” he said in a new BBC documentary. “It was my most important match, as I believe if I was sitting here today having not won Wimbledon, then everything else I achieved in my career wouldn’t matter.”
Despite the accolades Murray accrued during his career, for many he will be thought of as one of the great fighters. He endured multiple surgeries and medical procedures. He found himself in one physical recovery after another. And while some opined that he should have hung up his racket many years ago, the Scot continued to fight on. Why? Because of his love for the game. He was willing to put himself through all of that, just to continue to compete. He made that clear at his recent Wimbledon farewell.
“I want to play forever,” he told Sue Barker in front of his adoring fans. “I love the sport. I don’t want to stop.”
Nonetheless, Murray will stop and his days of being a competitive singles player are at their final stage. Many eyes will be upon the Brit during his finale hoping for one final run. Regardless of the result, make no mistake about it, Andy Murray will be remembered over time as one of the greats to play the sport.
