Andy Murray to retire

I read that Andy Murray is to retire if not immediately, then after Wimbledon this year. He is the ripe old age of 31! and has been struggling with knackered hips for at least the last 4 years.
While I am not for 1 minute suggesting that tennis is as brutal as say rugby, played at a high level it is not for pussy cats either.Virtually all the top tennis players are carrying or have had serious injury needing surgery . I played pro tennis for quite a few years and have had both my hips replaced having started to have problems with them when I was about late 30s!
I think that the powers that be need to have a rethink about how tennis is played nowadays as with the changes to surfaces played on, rackets and balls,points are too long and the strain on the body too much.
Personally I was never a fan of Andy either the person or his style of tennis but full marks for his amazing grit/ guile (great tactician) and determination. It will be some considerable time before Britain has anybody half as good again male or female (Konta is basically Australian).

 

Agree Silu
Tennis is proberbly the most aggressive non contact sport there is.
Andy has been unlucky with this injury in as much as his style and personality allowed.
He has had to live up to tremendous expectations from us the public and he has.
He has been around when a group of top players were at their height.......that took some doing.

I have had to chuckle that when he wins he is Scottish and when loosing he is British.

Weather you like him or not he has been for us Britts an absolute phenomenon.

I have been lucky enough to have seen him play at close quarters against Roger Federer at Wimbledon and I could not believe how fast the ball travels in real time,much faster than it seems on TV.

I wish him all the luck in the world for his future he has taken us to some extreme highs and lows .
Wheather we see him in the Australian Open or if he makes it to Wimbledon he can retire with great pride.

 

I have to say I think his habit of dissolving in tears at press conferences is babyish. He's 31, not a child, and has been at the top of world tennis for well over 10 years. He's done incredibly well and is incredibly rich.

I'm sorry for him for his hip pain; I'm sure it sucks. I've liked watching his Wimbledon matches and always hoped he'd win. He's chosen this life knowing it wouldn't last forever. Aren't most top sportsmen in whatever sport ready to stop playing at that level by their early 30s?

 

62 years old and still walking dogs for a living, no accolades, no cups or titles and no tearful goodbyes, no mega prize money, I wish Andy well, now time to join the real world?

P.S. I know how he must feel, I was told no more football at the age of 15, I ignored that advice and my knee is now suffering!

 

Shame I felt really sorry for him yesterday, he's had a fantastic career and won many title in the era of Federer - Nadel - Novak is no mean feet. Winning the two single Golds at the Olympics was very impressive. I've never been a big fan of his , he tends to whine a LOT and has a defensive mind set which isn't as appealing to watch.

I play tennis now and again ( I am not rite good ) and its much harder to play than you would think and it a good full body workout. I played squash a few weeks ago which looks harmless Drenched in sweat, it hurt just moving the day after.

 

I can't believe how the BBC news went on and on and on about it. He's retiring, he's not dead.

 

A slow news day today on the dumbed down news channels.

Welldone Sir Andy. A great career personally and carrying the British team to the Davis Cup win. He managed to keep going despite the pain,the pressure and the hostility from a sizeable section of his fellow countrymen.

 

I'm so glad I'm not bitter person. Obviously some on here are.There are many things I haven't a clue about, sport isn't 1 of them. Perhaps some people are completely oblivious about how one has to totally dedicate their lives from a young age to reach the pinnacle in most sport. Believe me very very few will ever start on the difficult journey thinking of the money they may make, they just strive to be the best they can be. I started this difficult journey at the age of 11 changing school and leaving many friends behind. Lived abroad as Andy did, away from my family and went through rigorous physiotherapy seasons try to keep my body in 1 piece. You never think when you start the journey that you will end up pretty well crippled but that is the price you often pay to get to the top. I don't regret what I did and expect Andy in time won't either but currently he will be very sad to realise that his journey in tennis is at an end.
I'm content that I tried to be really good at something instead of being someone who just criticises those who try and are nothing more than mediocre at anything,

 

He's done well,
but this morning on TV he came across as a right tart, what a wimp.

Expect to see him in the queue outside the job centre next week signing on for JSA.

While there are poor sods out there losing proper jobs this child gets all tearful about being unable to carry on playing tennis at 31.
For god's sake it aint the end of the world, and he must have seen it coming.

Wonder how many millions he has?

 

@silu , I am not a a bitter person and hope your opening two sentences in your second post were not aimed at me. I do have some sporting experience as an aspiring Olympic hopeful, swimmer in my case, and did have Olympic trials so I do understand the work and dedication involved.

I’ve been a tennis fan for years and followed his career, not the finer details of training etc, but I do know that if you embark on such a life, you do it because YOU want to do it. If you haven’t the dedication, you don’t do it or can’t do it. In my case I got interested in other things and gave up because I chose to. So to suggest bitterness on my part is misplaced.

Andy has been incredibly successful in a hard field and I respect all of that. My point is that there have been so many positives and successes in his life and it just seems kind of self pitying to behave tearfully the way he sometimes does. It’s time for him to move on and I’m sure he will. I do hope so.

 

Think it is time for me to move on from GC. My remarks were not aimed at you @Redwing per say but to be honest after all the unpleasantness over Gail i really don't think GC is a place I wish to contribute to any longer. I have enjoyed the many years I have been involved with GC but recently the fun has gone out of it for me. I wrote what I did to see if there was a very negative reaction and sure enough there was.
Good luck to all the true gardeners on this site, I have learnt a huge amount and hope I have been able to give a bit of my experience to others.

 

What some people don't seem to understand is the drive that sports people have that compels them to try to keep going through adversity.

I guess Andy Murray is frustrated that his body can no longer do what he wants it to do and is venting his feelings. Tennis has been his whole world since he was a child.
It's not about the money, he's got more than enough, it's about no longer being able to compete at the highest level.

However, he should have anticipated the fact that this situation would have come at some time, but sooner than he expected. But when your game depends a lot on "if you can get the ball back you can't lose" it takes a lot out of your joints. I guess it's the shock of the realisation, that his career is at an end.