It was fitting that Andy Murray’s professional tennis career ended only after impossible victories, tears, jubilation and finally, acceptance.
Indeed, the fact that Murray’s career ended only three days ago rather than last Sunday evening is the ultimate hallmark of a man who, despite having dozens of qualities on a tennis court, is best known for being one of the game’s grittiest fighters.
Murray wasn’t ready to end his illustrious career in inauspicious surroundings – in round one against Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori. Alongside his men’s doubles partner, Dan Evans, the pair saved five match points to win their first round against their Japanese opponents.
They probably should have gone out in the second round as well facing, as they did, another two match points.
But that match too, was won, before the Brits were ultimately defeated in the quarter-finals by American pair, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul.
So given that defeat for the British pair on Thursday, and following Murray’s confirmation that the Paris Olympics would, unequivocally, be his final tournament, Murray woke-up on Friday morning not as a professional tennis player.
Awakening as a “normal person” and not as an elite athlete is something the 37-year-old had never experienced in his entire adult life.
The first days of retirement, for any athlete, are a strange experience.
As any professional sportsperson will attest, there’s something immensely comforting about the routine that life as an elite athlete brings.
However, following retirement, that routine is, literally overnight, thrown in the bin.
For every athlete, that’s discombobulating, but particularly for someone like Murray who’s clung onto his career for far longer than most observers ever predicted.
Retirement was first mooted for Murray – although notably not by Murray – in 2019, when the Australian Open gave him a retirement ceremony that anyone would be proud of, only for Murray to absolutely not retire.
A metal hip later, Murray was back on court and, despite his struggles with fitness and form over recent years, it was clear that he was less than keen to call it quits.
Finally, he revealed that Paris 2024 would be his last competitive outing, and that he was content with his decision to walk away from his life as a professional athlete.
So, the million dollar question now for Murray is, what next?
He will, it’s fairly certain, have a few months at least of being a “normal” person.
A post-Olympics family holiday has already been booked and with four young children, Murray will have plenty to keep him occupied at home, at least in the short-term.
When asked about his retirement plans in 2021, Murray revealed he’d pondered the possibility of becoming a golf caddie, stating: “I really like golf, so being a caddie on a golf tour would be exciting - to be up close and personal with top golfers and to learn about another sport like that.
"There's probably also some crossover between tennis and golf on the mental side and things, and helping a golfer with that might be interesting.”
He also admitted he’d like to get his football coaching badges – Murray, of course, was an accomplished young footballer before deciding to focus his efforts on tennis.
But, in reality, it’s far less likely that Murray will deploy his talents in golf or football - or any sport other than tennis.
It’s a myth that being an elite athlete in a particular sport means you’ll automatically be a good coach in that sport.
Yes, there are certain aspects of being a good player that are helpful to have in one’s coaching armour but in reality, playing a sport and coaching it are two entirely different entities and it’s dangerous to assume proficiency in the former automatically means proficiency in the latter.
Some former tennis players have become good tennis coaches – Goran Ivanisevic, Ivan Lendl and Boris Becker to name but a few. But there’s also more than a few world-class tennis players who have found out just how difficult the transition from playing to coaching can be.
Murray, however, appears to have all the attributes required to make a successful move into coaching.
He’s a scholar of the game, a voracious watcher of tennis, has a tennis mind that few can rival and has a way of expressing himself and his ideas about tennis in a hugely compelling and understandable manner.
Murray also appears to be someone who loves being on tour.
That, for many former players who want to move into coaching, can be the one stumbling block; having spent years, perhaps even decades, travelling the world and living out of suitcases, many players are desperate to give up the hotel lifestyle rather than continue it as a coach.
But Murray does not seem phased in the slightest about more of the same of one of the very hardest parts of elite-level sport.
And the Scot already appears to have at least one eye on the coaching world.
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When asked at Wimbledon just a few weeks ago if he was planning to return to the All England Club as a guest in the Royal Box he pointed to the coaching box and replied “I would probably be more comfortable up there.”
Indeed, Murray’s long-term friend and current Davis Cup captain, Leon Smith, has already said he’d step aside if Murray was willing to take on the role.
My guess, however, is that a more hands-on coaching role would suit Murray better, certainly in the immediate future, than the role as Davis Cup captain.
Only time will tell exactly what Murray’s future holds. But the heartening news for all of us who were distraught to see him depart a tennis court for the final time this week, is that it’s almost certain that we’ve not seen the last of Andy Murray in the tennis world.
