MURRAY THE MENTOR
Is this the future for Britain’s tennis hero?
As ANDY MURRAY weighed up how to tackle his troublesome hip problem there emerged another sign that he may be thinking of life after tennis.
In normal times the announcement that the management agency he co-owns had made its most significant signing would not warrant much attention.
But in the context of his current dilemmas the news that Murray will be mentoring British top 10 player Katie swan, 18, takes on a little more weight.
The move was unveiled yesterday as Murray remained in the state capital of Queensland while he and his team sought more expert information on the best way to proceed after his withdrawal from the Brisbane International.
The scot has planned in his post-playing career to take on a mentoring role for young athletes, and is already performing that function with 17-year- old scot Aidan McHugh.
In swan, Murray has one of the few genuine young GB tennis prospects, one whose name first cropped up when she reached the Australian Open junior final aged 15. While she is still young, her progress since has not been straightforward and she is 301st in the professional rankings.
‘I’ve been watching Katie for a while,’ said Murray. ‘she has great potential and has already had some good results. I’m hoping we can offer support to her in areas on and off the court and complement the team she has in place already.’
There is no doubt Murray’s priority is still to sort out his injury so he can begin playing again. There was no shortage of goodwill towards the 30-year- old from within the tennis world after his latest setback. Murray has always stood in high regard with his peers. Nick Kyrgios is among the friends on tour who read his heartfelt Instagram post on Tuesday.
The Australian said yesterday: ‘It was emotional. I read the whole thing and obviously a lot of players commented as well because they all know that he’s a great guy. He’s always wondering how you are and how you’re going. A lot of people want to see him back at the top of the game. It sucks, seeing him not being able to get it right.’
Kyrgios has already suffered hip problems himself and could understand why Murray has held off having an operation. ‘I don’t think anyone ever really wants to get cut open,’ he said. ‘That’s the absolute last resort. It’s very scary.’ Former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt knows what it is like to have hip surgery — an option that Murray admitted has risen up his agenda. ‘In my case, I just had a labrum tear on my right hip,’ said Hewitt. ‘I played through it for four or five months, and then I had to have a small operation. ‘I was out for three months. And then when I started to feel the same thing on the other side (a couple of years later) I got it done straight away. My foot operation was a much bigger deal. I don’t know but it’s possible Andy’s hip is in worse shape than mine was.’
If Murray is unable to regain full movement, one long-term option could be to play more doubles, which does not require a player to cover so much of the court. His skills transfer well to the twoman game so it is possible that teaming up with brother Jamie, 31, would have its attractions. Yet for now Murray will be singleminded about maximising his chances of returning to singles and doing whatever is required.
Jo Konta and Kyle Edmund were last night playing in the quarter-final and second round respectively of the Brisbane International, from which Murray withdrew on Tuesday. NOVAK DJOKOVIC returns in two exhibition events next week after six months out with an elbow injury. The serb, 30, will use the Kooyong classic and Melbourne’s Tie Break Tens to test his fitness for the Australian Open, which starts on January 15.