For many of the leading tennis players of this generation, maintaining their legacy has become a clear priority but the Murray family and Roger Federer are taking different paths
Jamie Murray was in the middle of a meet-and-greet with Glaswegian school children this week when an STV journalist asked him if tennis in his country deserves better. Such questions seem to come up with increasing frequency as he and his brother Andy navigate the final years of their careers with no promising young players waiting in the wings. In Scotland, despite the money their success has generated, the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) provides only £1m of grants from their £64.5m revenue. Murray sighed: “If you think about the Scottish players that have represented us in Davis Cup and have won ties, I would say that they do,” he said. “We’re a country after all, not a county.”
Nostalgia is often the currency of team sports. Football is full of reminders of great goals and legends from years long ago. Arsenal fans still go to sleep thinking of Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry. But in tennis, the impact of greatness is fleeting and even the most transcendent players can quickly lose their influence if they don’t capitalise when at the top.
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