Andy Murray says he has ‘a retirement date in mind’ ahead of WimbledonAndy Murray is in disagreement with Novak Djokovic’s coach, Goran Ivanisevic, over whether Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon win symbolises the start of a new era in men’s tennis. In prevailing at SW19, the prodigious Spaniard inflicted Djokovic’s first defeat on Centre Court for over a decade.
Very few have gone to war with Djokovic at the All England Club and come out victorious. This year, the Serb was gunning for a record-equalling eighth men’s title, and he looked nigh on invincible en route to the final.
Once there, world No 1 Alcaraz emerged triumphant in an epic five-set battle to notch the second Grand Slam win of his career. Even so, Ivanisevic refused to entertain talk that it meant the start of a brand new era.
“Those stories are already a bit stupid,” he told Sportske Novosti. “The change of generation has been going on for six or seven years.
Andy Murray has spoken out on Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon defeat (Image: GETTY)
“If we look at [Daniil] Medvedev, [Andrey] Rublev, [Karen] Khachanov, [Denis] Shapovalov, Felix [Auger-Aliassime], [Jannik] Sinner, Alcaraz, [Holger] Rune… Alcaraz has been here for two years, but, let’s say, Medvedev has been here for five or six years, he is 27 years old. They are not from yesterday.”
By comparison, Murray is more convinced that Alcaraz’s grass-court triumph represented a changing of the guard. “You could argue it’s the start of a new era,” he told The Times.
Invalid email
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
“But Djokovic has won two of the three Grand Slams this year and was a few points away from winning the third. Alcaraz plays with a lot of freedom; it’s brilliant to watch. That becomes harder to maintain as you get older because you have more scar tissue after difficult losses.”
Murray has had his fair share of difficult defeats to deal with of late. The 36-year-old was on the wrong end of a Stefanos Tsitsipas comeback at Wimbledon, sending him crashing out in the second round.
Carlos Alcaraz sealed the first Wimbledon title of his career this year (Image: Getty)
Returning to action at the Citi Open earlier this week, Murray made it past Brandon Nakashima in straight sets but ultimately fell against top-seeded American Taylor Fritz.
The Scot’s next outing will be in Canada next week as he continues his hard-court preparation ahead of the US Open, which gets underway at the end of August.
Be First to Comment