I didn’t want to see him suffer, says Djokovic
Djokovic denied that he had tried to spare Murray any public humiliation by going easy on him when they met in a practice match last Thursday, an encounter which seemed to convince the Scot that he had reached the end of the road with his chronic hip problems. ‘I wasn’t, no,’ said Djokovic. ‘But I did see, and you didn’t need to be on court to notice that he’s struggling, that he’s not moving as well as he normally does. ‘It’s really hard to see him going through those emotions, on the court and off the court. He touched us all. ‘I wish him a painless future in whatever shape or form that is, on or off the court.’ Djokovic, who beat Murray four times in Australian Open finals, added: ‘I will carry beautiful memories from the court and off the court, as well, with him included. ‘It’s just sad. As someone that has been through a major injury myself recently, I can probably relate a little bit to what he’s going through.’ Murray, meanwhile, will have a statue at the All England Club alongside that of Fred Perry to mark his historic achievements at Wimbledon. ‘I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,’ Wimbledon’s chief executive Richard Lewis told the BBC. ‘I am sure something like that will be done. ‘We always felt when Andy retired it would be appropriate to recognise his career. ‘At the club, he is a highly respected person both on and off the court. We are very fond of him and he is a great person to have around the club.’ Murray’s former coach, Amelie Mauresmo, has also paid tribute to the Scot, telling L’Equipe: ‘He is a champion reaching beyond his sport, especially by taking steps forward on the gender equality topic.’ While they did not win a Grand Slam in their two-year spell together, she insisted that their partnership was purely about trying to win trophies and not to make a gesture. ‘(Me being his coach) was not a PR thing. It was a profound conviction he had from his education, his openmindedness,’ she said. ‘To me, he has been undervalued as a man, not as a tennis player.’