Andy Murray continues to be on everyone’s lips. During the last few days, the tennis player is addressing the main issues and concerns of the tennis ecosystem. The Scot criticizes the complaints of some teammates about the calendar and gets wet about a possible “Super Tour.”
The Scot is not being a protagonist on the court (1-5 in 2024), but he is off it. And in recent days Andy Murray’s statements are not going unnoticed. First, he raised the possibility of a Masters 1000 in South America and now he reflects deeply on the structures that govern tennis. He did it when he arrived at the ATP 500 in Dubai and his statements were reported by TheNationalNews.
Referring to his proposal for a Masters 1000 in South American lands, Andy insisted on it: “They love tennis there. But sometimes they don’t have the best tracks, due to the surface on which it is held and the time of year. But I think they deserve to have one because of how big the sport is there and how well they support the events.”stressed the former world number 1.
Murray has no doubt what the first change he would make would be: “Probably the calendar. If he could do whatever he wanted, and there were no contracts in vigor “If they prevented me from moving the calendar, there are obvious things I would do”. And the main changes to the calendar by the Scotsman would be the introduction of three more Masters 1000: one in South America, another in the Middle East and a last one on grass.
Strong criticism of the exhibitions
However, the incorporation of three more tournaments would further tighten the demanding tennis calendar, to which the UTS exhibitions and the recently ‘Six Kings Slams’ have recently been added. And this is where the Brit has ended up exploding: “I don’t know if I would want restrictions on exhibitions. I just think that sometimes players are hypocrites with the tennis calendar. It’s too much largo, but then they are flying all over the world in the offseason to play exhibitions.”said the three-time Grand Slam champion.
And Murray insisted on his rejection of exhibitions: “It seems hypocritical to me. I would only ask the players to be a little more selective when it comes to talking about the circuit, the calendar and everything when they are not playing exhibitions.”
The Scotsman positions himself in favor of players who cannot play most of the exhibitions due to their ranking or lack of recognition: “It’s the lower-ranked players who obviously don’t have those opportunities. Therefore, they want more tournaments, because it is an opportunity to win more money. So there has to be a bit of balance.”.
But this balance and stability seems to be far from occurring. Even more so when rumors circulate about a ‘Super Tour’ with the four Grand Slams and the nine Masters 1000. Andy also thinks about this: “Tennis is in a difficult situation now, because I don’t think anyone knows exactly what is going to happen. I know there are problems between Tennis Australia and the ATP; the grand Slams and the ATP and WTA.”
Uncertainties with Saudi Arabia
Like many people, Murray also does not know what the ATP’s next steps are with Saudi Arabia and has many questions: “Who is going to work with them and what will it be like? Will a tournament be held there? Will there be several? Will it be a kind of ‘super premier tour’ that the Grand Slams are they creating with Saudi Arabia? The truth is that I do not know. I don’t know what it will be like.”.
Despite the proposals and his own fight to improve the world of tennis, Andy Murray is pessimistic about the future: “Everyone looks out for their own interests and that is not always the best for the sport. Everyone is a little at odds with each other and it would be a lot easier if everyone collaborated for the common good. “That’s what I hope happens, but I would say it’s unlikely.”
2024-02-25 21:16:50
#Andy #Murray #criticizes #teammates #rejects #exhibitions
