ISick Boy imparted his philosophy to Renton shortly before shooting an unsuspecting dog in the back with an air rifle in an Edinburgh park. “At one point you’ve got it. Then you lose it and it’s gone forever. All walks of life. For example, George Best. Had it, lost it. Or David Bowie, Lou Reed .Charlie Nicholas, David Niven, Malcolm McLaren, Elvis Presley.”
“So we all get older and we can’t hack it anymore and that’s it? Is that your theory?”
“Yes.”
Andy Murray? The severe effects of the severe injury on his body make Sick Boy’s analysis an oversimplification, but the overall principle isn’t entirely crazy. Just don’t dare mention Murray’s Trainspotting analogy.
These are difficult times for one of Britain’s greatest ever athletes. According to Murray’s own assessment, Murray found himself in a “terrible moment” after losing to world No. 112 Benoit Paire in the first round of the Open in the South of France. Murray withdrew from the Australian Open at the same time. He has lost in the first round in six of his last seven fights. The 36-year-old has not advanced beyond the third round of a Grand Slam event since 2017. All evidence points to his stellar career coming to a grinding halt. If people aren’t questioning Murray’s longevity, then something is wrong.
That’s not an assessment Murray is willing to accept. BBC Scotland tennis correspondent Kheredine Idessane’s midweek column sparked outrage on social media from the three-time Grand Slam winner. “It’s been an incredible journey for an exceptional man,” Idessane said. “It was such an honor to be able to witness so much of it.” What follows is a completely innocuous opinion piece from a completely innocuous individual. One line that infuriated Murray: “At what point does holding on to courage begin to damage his legacy?”
The language may be clumsy, but the idea of athletes staying put, far beyond the health of themselves or the public who must watch through their fingers, is nothing new. Think of Wrexham’s Ian Rush or Billy Casper’s 106 at the 2005 Masters. Choosing the right time to exit is important because in the modern world, people have short memories.
“Targeting my legacy?” Posted by Murray. “Do me a favor. Most people would give up in my situation. But I’m not like most people and I think differently. I’m not going to give up. I’m going to keep fighting and trying to create what I know I have performance of ability.
“I’m not most people,” he said. No, he’s a tennis player. He was an exceptional tennis player who inspired millions of people to spend a few weeks each year following the sport, who otherwise would not be able to tell the difference between a draw and a juice. Evaluating your “legacy” can feel like a dangerous rabbit hole.
In 2019, Murray actually announced his retirement.The excellent documentary “Rebirth” captures the extent of his physical and mental suffering, His subsequent comeback seemed to have overcome all difficulties. The reality is, however, that retirement is not an alien concept to him. Nor was it in December, when he admitted: “This could be the last year, yeah.” It all makes Tuesday’s outburst incomprehensible, unless the subtext is that Murray and Murray alone can talk dogmatically own future.
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There are several reasons for this. Murray should be encouraged to use his social media accounts to provide honest opinions. He was widely praised for his mockery of Nigel Farage and his vitriolic comments about Brexit. He also had every right to object to the column: as the subject of the column, that was entirely within his rights. Murray’s competitive instincts clearly remain intact. The sting is okay; even a Scottish idiosyncrasy. In a physically demanding sport where many players are younger and fitter, it’s admirable that Murray is clearly eager to keep working hard. Tiger Woods only has the hills of Augusta National to worry about in his 2019 redemption story. Murray’s teammates fired the ball at him at 120 mph.
However, Murray should remember that since his rise to fame he has been hero-worshipped by much of the British media. While he cursed and ranted at Wimbledon, the BBC turned the other cheek. What he just did was completely typical of someone who is not used to even mild criticism. By tagging Murray in the article, Ed Sane knew he was inviting a response. For a sports icon with 3.5 million followers on X, the wisdom of allowing the subsequent flood of attention is debatable.
What’s even more striking – but not in a good way – is the eagerness of famous faces to revel in Murray’s posts. They had no choice but to kneel at the feet of Saint Andy. “Don’t give in to the haters!” This is vomit-inducing. Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh has come to the defense of his fellow Scot. Sharon Davis did the same thing. Martina Navratilova shouted. Andy Roddick seemed particularly confused. “Imagine telling an accomplished, iconic adult what you think about what job they should choose and when they should do it,” the former U.S. Open champion writes. “This is a stupid and thirsty article. The legacy cannot be taken away. The achievements live forever.” Roddick must live in a terrifying sheltered world that prohibits outside analysis of athletes contrary to their own. He must have painstakingly read the offending 696 words, which appropriately praise Murray’s achievements.
Next year Wimbledon will mark the 20th anniversary of Murray’s first appearance at the Wimbledon Championships. There is a natural end point for a great run. It’s just that getting to this point seems to be a daunting challenge right now. No one should feel bad for pointing out this obvious fact. Murray’s assistants did him no favors.
