Jamie Murray names new sport wants to beat brother Andy in after retirement

Jamie Murray has set new goals in golf and padel after announcing his retirement from an extraordinary career in tennis.

In a 22-year career, Murray became the first British doubles player to rise to world No.1.

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And in 2015, the brotherly duo of Jamie and two-time Wimbledon champion Andy helped Great Britain win their first Davis Cup trophy since 1936.

On Wednesday, the 40-year-old officially confirmed the end of his playing career, thanking his entire family for their unwavering support.

Jamie spoke to Ally McCoist and Gabby Agbonlahor on Thursday’s talkSPORT Breakfast about his next steps.

He said: “I’d like to ski after tennis, as I never got the chance when I was playing. This issue with tennis was that calendar was always set, so I always went to the same cities that were on the tour list every year.

“I would like to travel and see more of the world. I’d like to get better at golf – I want to be able to compete with Andy.

“Since he stopped tennis, he’s been putting all his time into golf, so you can imagine what he’s like.

“I also want to get better at padel, it’s such a fun sport.”

Easy decision

The Scot won seven majors in his career including two mixed doubles victories at the All England Club in 2007 and 2017, with Jelena Jankovic and Martina Hingis respectively.

Additionally, he won the US Open three times in mixed doubles and claimed two men’s doubles titles alongside Bruno Soares.

Murray had not played since losing at the US Open last August and admitted he has known it was his time to retire since then.

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He said: “It was quite easy, I don’t miss playing that much. Last year was tough, I got ill randomly in the summer and had six weeks off.

“I didn’t really pick up a racket, then I went to New York and played without feeling like myself and I didn’t want to go to China afterwards.

“I decided I would stay at home, get my body right and finish the season in Europe, but I never picked up a racket again. I should’ve made the announcement months ago but I just kept putting it off.

“I realised I needed to put a finality to it. So here I am, day one officially retired.”

The Murray legacy

Jamie thanked his mother and brother in a message where he called time on his 36-year total journey in the sport.

His mother, Judy, has also received numerous honours, having served as Scotland‘s National Tennis Coach and becoming the first woman to be awarded the Lawn Tennis Association’s Performance Coach Award.

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The 40-year-old commented on the impact his family has had, saying: “We came from a town and a country which had no history in tennis, and it’s not the environment for it either.

“The fact that we were both able to get to number one in the world in our respective disciplines… it’s crazy we both did it at the same time.

“My brother certainly created a lot of interest in the sport from the country. My mum was a huge influence on getting people of all ages involved.

“When we started playing tennis at three years old, Scotland didn’t have a single indoor tennis court. We were very lucky that Stirling University, which was ten minutes away, built four.

“We were fortunate because we would have missed so much training time if they weren’t made, as we all know what the weather can be like in Scotland.

Reflecting on the modern game, he added: “The professional game has become more physical – they get stronger, faster, and hit it harder.

“I think the sport is in an amazing spot right now with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz doing what they do and people having the debate, who’s better? Them or the big four[ Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray]?

“I’m definitely interested to see where their careers pan out over the next few years.”