Andy Murray is surprised at just how much he is enjoying his retirement after quitting tennis earlier this summer. The 37-year-old played his last tournament at the Olympics, representing Great Britain in the men’s doubles alongside Dan Evans.
Murray was visibly emotional at the end of his final match as he brought the curtain down on his glittering career, which saw him win three Grand Slam titles. However, it seems he is not regretting his decision to walk away after opening up on the benefits of retirement.
He told BBC Radio 4: “Since I’ve stopped, I feel really free and have got lots of time to do whatever it is I want. I can dedicate time to my children and have free time to play golf or go to the gym on my own terms. It is really nice and I didn’t expect that.
“I was expecting to find retirement hard and be missing tennis a lot and wanting to get back on the tennis court on tour. So far it has been the complete opposite to what I was thinking.”
Murray acknowledged there was no ‘perfect ending’ for a tennis player but revealed he was now feeling guilt-free around his family. He admitted that it was hard to leave his four children at home for weeks at a time while travelling the world and playing in various tournaments.
“The thing that I always found difficult in recent years was that there was always a guilt associated with what I was doing,” he added.
“If I was going away for a trip of like three to four weeks I would feel guilty leaving my children at home or being away from my wife for a long time with them, so missing the kids I found hard, but if I was at home with the kids then I was running around and spending a lot of my time on my feet after training.
“I was then thinking: ‘Is this going to affect my training or performance the next day? Should I have my feet up?’. I found that stuff difficult over the last few years.”
Murray has largely stayed out of the limelight since playing the final match of his career at the Olympics last month. He will be looking forward to spending even more time with his children now he does not have to worry about the hectic schedule his life once revolved around.
