WHERE’S MURRAY?
LTA blasted as Andy, Jamie and Judy are left out of relaunch
Britain’s most famous tennis family are on another collision course with the Lawn tennis association after being airbrushed from a glossy relaunch of the governing body.
Jamie Murray struggled to contain his frustration after a 36-page document and video outlining a five-year plan made no mention of the two brothers’ achievements, nor of Judy Murray, GB’s highestprofile coach. Other lesser British players are featured, but the absence of Britain’s greatest player provoked anger and ridicule on social media.
in a slightly surreal turn of events, even star comedienne and tennis enthusiast Miranda Hart joined in the criticism, saying they should have included images of andy’s famous winning lob in the 2015 Davis Cup final.
the latest Lta clanger follows on from the events of January in australia, where the governing body took flak for failing to build a sufficient legacy after it looked like andy might be retiring.
‘i don’t know what they’re trying to do, their focus or strategy,’ said Jamie, after he had slipped to a second-round loss in the Miami Open on sunday night.
‘But i do know that it’s important to have role models for kids to look up to and aspire to be. i would assume that andy certainly is a pretty big role model in this country, not just for tennis but across all sport. so it seems like an interesting decision not to showcase the one shining light in British tennis.
‘ it’s frustrating to continue talking about it. i don’t know why i feel like i should keep my mouth shut, but that’s the hassle you get for it when you open your mouth and say what you think.
‘My mum knows what she is doing. Everybody involved in tennis in our country knows that she knows what she is doing. she knows how to get kids into tennis, give them the skills that they need and create opportunities in a fun environment.’
Britain’s top doubles player also revisited the subject of the lack of investment in scottish tennis, a longstanding bone of contention, saying it was ‘f****** annoying’.
When Judy Murray saw the omission of her family from the publication pointed out on twitter, she responded simply ‘Wow’.
in January, andy’s stark announcement about his hip turned into a prolonged spat over his legacy, not helped by the Lta being conspicuously low-key in paying tribute amid all the others that were flowing. it beggars belief that the governing body could allow themselves to be dragged into this argument.
they have also been mocked on social media for their new logo, with a sloping ‘a’ at the end that makes it look like a rapidly plunging share price.
the botched launch of the vision — which features many laudable aims such as opening the sport up to more people — is symptomatic of the way the organisation stumbles from one hapless episode to another under latest chief executive scott Lloyd.
it comes after it emerged last week that the pro-standard clay courts at the national tennis Centre have been dug up as the clay season is about to start, with players left in the dark.
an Lta spokesman claimed that leaving out two players with nine Grand slam titles between them was not a snub: ‘this document outlines the Lta’s vision to open up tennis to new people and communities, encouraging them to try our sport and as such it features imagery that reflects the grassroots area of tennis.’
referring purely to a 36-page leaflet, and not the accompanying video (which features Kyle Edmund and Cam norrie but neither Murray), he added: ‘the only imagery featuring elite tennis is of two female athletes both on the Lta’s player pathway, to illustrate the section in the document about development. andy Murray is the greatest champion we have seen and he rightly features across our website and in many of our publications.’
not for the first time they insisted they are in talks with Murray’s representatives, on ‘how best to translate his phenomenal success into a lasting legacy for our sport’.
lniCK KyrGiOs’ latest scrape at the Miami Open came when a spectator was thrown out after barracking and then offering to fight him. security removed the man from the courtside seats following a series of exchanges with the australian as he made the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-1 win over serbia’s Dusan Lajovic.
‘at a change of ends he literally just said, “you’re a d***”,’ Kyrgios said later, claiming he only responded after the insults persisted: ‘ then he was like, “Come here and say it”.’
Kyrgios already faces a fine after calling the umpire a ‘ f****** disgrace’ after his doubles exit.