‘I’D LOVE TO BE THE NEXT ASH BARTY’
Little Lewi is making a racket on the Australian tennis circuit
When Lewis “Lewi” Murray first picked up a tennis racquet as a toddler, he never dreamed he’d become a role model for Indigenous youngsters, his father and his ancestors.
But the 13-year-old is proudly achieving what his elders were often denied after being awarded age champion at the recent National Indigenous Tennis Carnival in Darwin in front of one of his heroes, 14-time grand slam winner Evonne Goolagong Cawley.
While Lewi says it was a nerve-racking experience when Wiradjuri woman Evonne placed her chair courtside before his match, it didn’t put him off his game. “I got a bit nervous, but I kept playing how I wanted to play,” Lewi, from Castlemaine, Victoria, tells Woman’s Day. “It was the greatest moment of my career so far.”
The victory was another reminder of how times have changed. His father, renowned didgeridoo musician, artist and educator Ron Murray, 61, who grew up in Balranald, NSW, says he didn’t feel welcome at tennis courts when he was a kid. “It makes me so happy when I see my sons, and any Aboriginals, do well at any sport,” he says. “Things have moved forward but I still think more could be done… it can be expensive.”
Proud mum Sarah James-murray recalls Lewi following his brother Brodie, 21, around the court as soon as he was big enough to swing a racquet.
While both her boys have natural ability, Sarah says Lewi now trains around 10 hours a week to keep his top shots coming. “Brodie was his first unofficial coach and he’s been a great role model for him,” Sarah, 52, says. “To have watched Lewi come into his own makes me so proud.”
Lewi, who is a member of the Evonne Goolagong Foundation, says it’s wonderful to see more Indigenous athletes rising through the ranks. “I want to play professional tennis one day and it’s going to be hard work. But I’d love to be the next Ash Barty.”