Golden boy Andy happy to be one of the GB gang

Andy Murray’s rock star departure from Brazil could not have been less in keeping with the way he conducted himself during the Olympics. The ATP Tour waits for no man, and immediately after his post-match obligations Murray rushed, gold medal around his neck, straight from the stadium to share a private jet with rafael nadal to Cincinnati for this week’s Masters event.

a first round bye is his only breathing space and he will play there tomorrow, taking on either the huge-serving Ivo Karlovic or argentina’s Juan Monaco.

British davis Cup captain Leon smith coached Murray for the past 10 days, and there is very little the 29-year-old scot does anymore that can surprise him.

What struck smith most was Murray’s behaviour around the Olympic village, and how the Wimbledon champion mucked in with other athletes, especially the British team members.

apparently not a selfie was refused, nor the chance of a conversation turned down.

‘There was a lot of talk about whether he would be in a hotel or in the village but he was in the village and he absolutely loved it,’ said smith.

‘We had one apartment we were all in, the golfers were across the way, it was pretty much an open door policy, everyone was popping in and out to talk.

‘With life in the village, in the lift or in the food court, you are bumping into a lot of people and andy is very recognisable.

‘But he was happy to speak to everyone and he knows every sport, everything that was going on with the British team, every result.

‘I was in the lift listening to him talking to other athletes and thinking: “How on earth are you able to keep up to date with so much going on elsewhere?”. We were in the food court with the GB boxers one night, and I think they were a bit astonished at his depth of knowledge about them.

‘Being flag bearer was one of the proudest moments of his career and you could tell that. I think he saw himself as someone who could be around the village and share his experience with other British athletes.’

The last time Murray won a gold it proved the springboard for him to win the us Open and break his Grand slam duck.

‘The Olympics in London was huge and ended up really helping him progress as well,’ said smith. ‘I don’t know if this will do the same for the us Open but the bottom line is he’s just playing great tennis this year. He is going to be tough to beat in new york, he is playing to an incredible level.’

Murray could easily have skipped Cincinnati, as novak djokovic is doing, and the fact that he has made the effort to go suggests he has the serbian in his sights. Last year, the scot lost in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows, but with hindsight feels he got his schedule wrong. ‘I didn’t have enough time off and when I was at the us Open that caught up with me a bit,’ he said, believing he has paced himself better this time.

‘I didn’t play well that whole tournament. I struggled in all the matches. I learned a lot from that period.’

Murray also revealed how hard he had taken his defeat in the men’s doubles with his brother and room-mate Jamie.

‘The loss with Jamie was hard,’ he said. ‘I was down after that, I was pretty upset after being on a bit of a high having carried the flag a few days beforehand. It’s been quite an up-and-down few weeks emotionally.’

Before facing del Potro he was also inspired by what other Team GB members had done.

‘I saw the end of the golf. My match could have gone either way, the golf could have gone either way,’ he revealed.

‘I saw Max Whitlock had won a gold before I went out. I’ve seen him and the other gymnasts around and it is amazing what they do with their bodies. Our first gold medal in gymnastics is pretty amazing and they are all really nice guys.

‘I have enjoyed the experience again and will hopefully get another chance in Tokyo.’

Overhauling djokovic to reach world no1 will not be easy. Murray is miles ahead of anyone else but still has less than two thirds of his rival’s ranking points. He can exert pressure if — despite obvious fatigue — he somehow carves out more wins this week and then makes a serious run in new york.