Timing is everything as Murray plans singles return
In hindsight, Andy Murray’s partnership with Serena Williams has come to resemble a holiday romance. It was nostrings fun in the sun, but completely unsuited to any long-term purpose.
Williams had already moved on to her 32nd grand slam final, which makes the mixed doubles campaign seem even more inconsequential. The question is, what now for Murray? What must he be thinking after seeing his former partner getting obliterated by Simona Halep yesterday, or today when he settles down to watch Novak Djokovic take on Roger Federer? He would not be human if he did not grit his teeth ever so slightly.
The problem, of course, is his wretched hip. He is well aware that he needs as much time as possible to recover from the resurfacing operation in which the head of his femur was capped by metal. A setback may add months to an already arduous recovery process. As he wrote in his BBC Sport column: “I need to get those muscles back to a certain level before I can go on a singles court and try to play best of five sets, otherwise I could do damage if the strength isn’t there.”
The temptation to sprint, let alone run, before he can walk on his path back to singles competition must be overwhelming, particularly when Djokovic and Federer stroll on to Centre Court at 2pm today. The alternative is to remain in doubles, slowly building competitive court time. That would be a sensible but stultifying course of action.
In the Netflix show Stranger Things, there is a parallel universe called the Upside Down which exists beyond the realm of human consciousness. Everything is identical to the human world but it is gloomy and incredibly isolating. That is effectively what doubles is to singles on the tour. You play in the same tournaments, share locker rooms, but to all intents and purposes you are there only as an ethereal presence.
Playing doubles at the Queen’s Club and Wimbledon will have provided a very misleading impression for Murray. Here he remains a star, placed on the show courts at every possible opportunity. That would not be the case on the grind of the tour where playing doubles occupies a position somewhere below ticket attendant. Marooned on outside courts with a different postcode to the main arenas, with the smallest smattering of spectators and chicken feed for prize money.
Then there is the fact that there is no equivalent to Tinder for finding a partner. Just finding buddies for Wimbledon was a challenge in itself, with Pierre-Hugues Herbert only committing after he decided not to play with Nicolas Mahut, while the 2013 and 2016 Wimbledon champion was turned down by Ashleigh Barty and Kristina Mladenovic before settling upon Williams in the mixed.
Most doubles players are specialists who are committed to long-term pairings. Partnerships outweigh pedigree, hands down. Even with their collective 26 grand-slam titles, “SerAndy” were still eliminated in the third round; he did not even make it that far with Herbert in the men’s.
The lure of playing singles must be close to irresistible. The question, then, becomes where and when. The Lawn Tennis Association would roll out every scrap of red carpet in its possession if Murray were to grace his own Murray
Williams’s response, when I asked her about it yesterday, was characteristically unwavering. “The day I stop fighting for equality for people who look like you and me is the day I’m in my grave,” she told me. Amen, I mouthed back at her. It is for this – as well as for her tennis – that Williams is the woman they call GOAT and, to me, the ultimate sporting icon.
As Judy Murray, who knows a thing or two about all-time greats, wrote in The Daily Telegraph last week: “She breaks out of the tennis bubble to be recognised by the wider public. She is used in promotional campaigns by numerous major brands, she is friends with dozens of celebrities and she even has her own TV series.
“Above all, she uses her voice and her global platform to speak out on social causes and areas of inequality. When you consider where the Williams sisters came from, and all the racial, social and gender obstacles they surmounted, it is one of the greatest stories in sport.”
And I am certain it is not a story that is over. Trophy in Glasgow from Sept 16-22. Then there is the build-up to the US Open, which starts in earnest towards the end of July with events in Atlanta, San Jose, Washington and Montreal.
That would seem a prudent course of action, dipping his toe into the American hard-court season without committing to exposing himself to the rigours of five-set tennis at Flushing Meadows. He could still rekindle his fling with Williams there – mixed doubles only takes place at the majors and the Olympics – but it is clear where Murray’s heart truly lies.
“I’ve enjoyed it a lot, and could play more doubles in the future, but ultimately my goal is returning to singles if I’m able to – and that’s my focus over the next few months,” Murray wrote. The singles sirens are calling for Murray; he must take care to avoid being shipwrecked.