Andy Murray admitted that he’d be less inclined to do punditry work at Wimbledon because of the consquences he knows his words would have on young tennis stars. The two-time winner at the All England Club will certainly be a keen observer at the Grand Slam this month but stopped short of confirming a potential role on the punditry desk, instead pouring cold water on the idea.
His six-month coaching partnership with Novak Djokovic came to an end by mutual consent last month, yet the 38-year-old said he remains more interested in returning to the coaching side of the sport. And that is quite the constrast to his thoughts about becoming a pundit, especially at Wimbledon – which the BBC will broadcast to millions once again from June 30.
It was during an interview with GQ that Murray made his thoughts clear on the trials and tribulations that come with being a British pundit passing opinion on British players and the negative impact it could have on their careers. “I’m not thinking daily that I need to tweet something today, or somehow remain relevant,” he said when asked whether he feels the need to remain in the public eye.
“That’s why I’m much more interested in the idea of coaching, because I feel like I’d actually really be helping someone. Whereas with punditry, it can be harmful.
“If I go and work at, let’s say Wimbledon, you start getting asked questions about British players like Jack Draper.”
He admitted that he used to listen to when British ex-players would discuss him in the media and the issue that comes with being a player who listens to the noise. “I know when the British ex–tennis players would talk about my tennis and what I should be doing. Because you respect them, you listen to what they’re saying – but it’s not always the same as what your coach is telling you.”
Having described punditry as an “easy gig”, Murray implied it’s the opportunity to put young players on the right path as well as the difficulty of coaching that makes it much more of an attractive option for him in his post-playing career. “What the pundits are saying could be wrong.
“They’re not right all the time, and when you’re young, it’s quite conflicting,” he continued. “So I’d be more inclined to do coaching, because I think punditry is quite an easy gig. You can just throw stuff out there. People love it if it’s a bit controversial, but you don’t actually have any skin in the game.”
Roy Keane was brought up as a subject during the interview after Murray was jokingly asked whether his dislike of punditry won’t make him tennis’ answer to the Manchester United icon, to which he answered: “Interestingly I love Roy; I would love to see him coaching. People like that have so much to offer to actually really help people.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk