BRACE YOURSELF, JUDY MAY HAVE BEEN SPOT ON

IT looks as if mother might have known best, after all. Hopefully not. But it is possible that Judy Murray, the most famous tennis mum in the history of these isles, was close to perfect in her prediction about son Andy’s athletic longevity. Almost two years ago to the very day, Judy sat down with

Sportsmail and spoke about the importance of capitalising on this Golden Age of Tennis. While it lasted. Raising the subject of the one foe no elite athlete can ever conquer, Judy included elder son Jamie in a discussion about the inevitability of the Murray boys’ eventual retirement. ‘They won’t be playing forever,’ she said, openly declaring: ‘Andy might only play for another couple of years — if his body holds out and he still has the desire to do it. ‘Jamie might go on a bit longer because he plays doubles. But I recognise that Andy might only play another couple of years. And then he’ll be gone.’ Damn. A couple of years? We’d all like to think that Judy’s prophecy is a little off, on this occasion. Then again, nobody understands the strengths and limitations of Scotland’s greatest ever sports person quite like the woman who raised and coached Andy during his formative years. Maybe, just maybe, this is it. The end. Tennis fans, brace yourselves for a long, long winter. Admirers of glorious ability married to relentless determination, prepare to doff your caps one last time to an absolute legend. Of course, everyone in Murray’s inner circle — Judy included — will be backing him to beat this latest complication in a hip condition a long time in the developing. Listen to anyone who has ever worked with Andy Murray and they’ll tell you that nobody, but nobody, has managed to get more out of their body than the greatest tennis player in British history. Whether that has been adding

the muscle and flexibility to his naturally lean frame at the outset of his career, or grinding away in rehab to come back from injury, Andy gives it his absolute all. This is a guy who has to win at kids’ games. Against kids. A character who, days after the event, phoned up a mate to complain about a wrong answer in a Christmas quiz conducted during a festive friends-and-family gettogether; the point had cost him the title and he wasn’t going to let it go. While no one doubts Murray’s iron resolve and near obsessive push for perfection, however, no athlete comes back every time. And so, among all who have been caught up in the emotional turbulence of following Murray’s career from the outset, roaring in delight first at his potential then his triumphs, tearing out clumps of hair in frustration when he has fallen just short, there is this creeping fear. Every time Murray has missed a tournament or limped along the baseline, there has been a collective gasp. An audible airing of serious concerns. Come on, we all know it’s going to end some time. That’s what Judy was trying to break to us, back in September of 2015. She was preparing the ground. Letting us down easily. Nobody can be ignorant of the fact that Murray is 30, absolutely ancient for tennis professionals not named Roger or Rafa. Even if this isn’t the last we see of Andy, we should get ready for what comes next. Most can remember what it was like before we had a multiple Grand Slam winner and world No 1 to call our own. The current US Open, where Jamie’s doubles efforts have been an honourable exception to the trend of British floppery, will be familiar to all old enough to remember tennis not only pre-Andy but pre-Tim and Greg, even. But try explaining what lies in wait — if not now, then all too soon — to a generation who have only ever known a time where Scotland has a worldbeating, Slam-collecting, swaggering tennis giant bestriding the globe like some kind of dry-witted behemoth. Maybe break it to them gently, though. And make sure mum is ready with a cuddle.