Sky Sports’ Tim Henman says “we will all miss Andy Murray” when he hangs up his racket, which the two-time Wimbledon champion has indicated will be this summer.
Murray, 36, has said that he “did not plan on playing much past this summer” although he would love to play at another Olympic Games, but only if he felt like there was a chance of winning a medal.
The three-time Grand Slam winner, who held the No 1 spot in the men’s singles rankings for a total of 41 weeks in the same era as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, could focus on the doubles at the Paris Olympics, which will be played on his least favourite surface, clay, at Roland Garros.
He’s going to enjoy these last few months and we should enjoy watching him because I’m sure we’ll miss him when he’s gone
Henman says we should enjoy what Murray has left to give over the next few months and added “we’ll miss him when he’s gone”.
The former British No 1 said: “There’s been a lot of talk around his retirement and I’ve always said that he should play for as long as he wants. There’s been an indication that he’s going to stop sometime in the summer and when we all look back and reflect on what he’s achieved, it’s absolutely incredible.
“To win three Slams and two Olympic golds as well as the Davis Cup and be world No 1, it’s an absolutely phenomenal achievement and I think you do have to take into account the era that he’s been competing in against Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic who are three of the greatest players in the history of our sport, so he will look back with a lot of satisfaction.
“He’s going to enjoy these last few months and we should enjoy watching him because I’m sure we’ll miss him when he’s gone.”
Tim Henman (left) and Murray played each other four times with the Scot winning on three occasions
Henman also spoke about what it was like to play Murray, with the Scot winning on three out of the four occasions the pair met, in the time they played together in the same era.
“I played him four times and I didn’t enjoy playing him because first and foremost the game style, he was such a good counter-puncher, such a good mover, and such a good returner,” said Henman, a four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist. “He was a slightly better version of Leyton Hewitt and I didn’t like playing Hewitt – we were also at different stages of our career.
“There was a certain amount of expectation that went with those matches from a British point of view but he’s been a great friend of mine since he was probably 16, 17 coming on the scene and hopefully I’ll get him on the golf course a bit more once he’s retired.”
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Murray explained who he was when asked by Laura Robson about his fake laughter on court, saying he’s ‘a bit odd, a bit strange’
And what does Henman think about Murray’s career path after tennis? Is he likely to appear on our TV screens as a pundit or take on a coaching role?
Henman said: “If you’re saying to me which avenue is he going to take, would he go down a television or a coaching role? I would say my opinion is he is more likely to go down a coaching route, but he’s got family with four young kids, and I’m sure he’ll take some time to relax when he does eventually hang up the racket.”
‘He’s still a spring chicken!’ | Murray can retire when he wants
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David Garrido speaks to former British tennis star Naomi Broady as the pair discuss Andy Murray’s Miami Open chances ahead of his second-round match against Tomas Martin Etcheverry and when the Scotsman will retire
Murray wrote on the court-side TV camera that there is ‘life in the old dog yet’ after pulling off an impressive comeback victory against a wilting Matteo Berrettini at the Miami Open earlier this week.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, Naomi Broady says the former British No 1 has not been “riding the coat-tails of his past successes” in order to enter tournaments.
The former world No 76 said: “He’s still a spring chicken. We’re all wondering when he’s going to retire, but there’s life in the old dog yet!
“I think one of the main reasons why he came back from his hip surgery so strongly was because one of the doctors said to him ‘you’re never going to play tennis again’. He took that to heart and said ‘I am going to show you and prove you wrong and I am going to get back on court’.
“He is back at the top of his game even though he’s not world No 1, but he’s earning his right to play at these tournaments through his ranking.
“He’s not getting in there off wildcards and riding the coat-tails of his past successes, so leave the man be. He’s earned the right to be there and he’s still beating a lot of the best players in the world so leave him to retire as and when he wants.”
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Murray aired his frustration with journalists asking him about how long he has left in tennis, feeling he’s giving the same answers over and over again
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