UK (Commonwealth) _ The 36-year-old Andy Murray has acknowledged that he could be in his “final few months” of playing professional tennis, even as he keeps raising the possibility of retiring.
After losing in the first round of the Australian Open in January, there have been a lot of rumors about Murray’s future. The Scot even hinted that this may have been his last visit to Melbourne. The 36-year-old has since struggled to find his best form, but on Monday at the Dubai Open, he defeated Denis Shapovalov in the first round with remarkable style.
Murray rallied to defeat the Canadian 4-6 7-6 (5) 6-3, securing a rematch in the second round against either Ugo Humbert or Gael Monfils. Although he was happy with his performance, the three-time grand slam winner later said that he likely doesn’t “have long left.” After winning, Murray remarked, “People read a lot into what I speak on the court sometimes and it’s not always rational.” “However, I am asked about [retirement] every time.
I still clearly love the game and competing, but as you get older, it is harder and harder to maintain up your physical fitness and compete with the younger people. It’s not simple. Though I doubt I have much longer left, I will try my hardest during these next few months.
After suffering several first-round losses, the seasoned Scot had to fight off rumors of his impending retirement. When Shapovalov, once a top-10 player, won the first set, it appeared as though he might soon follow suit.
Murray had had difficulty breaking through his opponent’s 24-year-old serve, but after two hours and thirty-three minutes, he prevailed in a second-set tiebreaker thanks to a characteristically brave performance. In the final, Murray maintained his cool to break twice. Humbert and Monfils, who are both from France, square off on Tuesday, with Murray waiting on a Frenchman in the second round. Daniil Medvedev, the reigning champion, is favored in Dubai.
However, it’s certain that retirement is on his mind since, as he revealed at the Australian Open last month: Although I haven’t made a choice yet, I have talked to my family. They are well aware of my feelings and when and where I would desire to end my playing career.
Murray’s final match is expected to take place in July at Wimbledon, where he has won two titles. The schedule of “a few months” sounds reasonable, although he may end it sooner if he believes his form is not ready. This was his 500th victory on a hard court, which is an accomplishment he shares with Andre Agassi, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal. In that regard, the victory was good.
“500 matches is a lot of matches, and hard courts have been a great surface for me over the years,” Murray remarked. ‘Well, Murray has won 46 ATP Tour singles championships, including two gold medals at the Summer Olympics and 14 Masters 1000 tournaments.
His breakthrough came in 2012 when he defeated Djokovic to win the US Open. With that victory, he became the first male champion since Fred Perry in 1936 and the first British major singles champion since Virginia Wade in 1977. A month prior, he had defeated Roger Federer to win the gold medal in men’s singles and the silver medal in mixed doubles at the 2012 London Olympics.
Murray reached another six major finals between 2013 and 2016. Two of these meetings were victories for him, at Wimbledon in 2013 and 2016. 2016 was Murray’s greatest season to date. Murray advanced to three major finals and won Wimbledon in that year. He has battled many injuries since 2016, and as a result of playing infrequently on tour, he dropped out of the top 100 in 2018. However, he has since gradually made his way back to the top 50.
Since he helped the United Kingdom become a major player in men’s tennis again for the first time since the early 20th century, Murray is revered as a national hero there. In 2015, he and his sibling guided the Great Britain Davis Cup team to victory. Since he chose Amélie Mauresmo as his coach, Murray—who has always been a vocal feminist—became just the second player in the history of the ATP Tour to rank in the top 10.
