Andy Murray revealed he would miss two of his children’s birthdays this week owing to playing commitments, opening up about his pain at spending so much time away from his family.
The three-time grand slam champion would much rather be at home with his young family than compete at the Swiss Indoors in Basel this week. Murray and his wife, Kim Sears, jointly have four little children, all under four.
He remarked in Basel that he doesn’t want to miss his son’s and second daughter’s birthdays which are due this week. “I want to be there for them as much as possible,” he added.
According to Murray, his oldest children are now of an age when they are beginning to recognise his absence. He remarked, “Our kids are now at an age when they realise I’m gone.
He stated that he feels horrible and extremely sad when he is gone for an extended period. The 35-year-old said he would arrange his calendar so he won’t be away from home for extended periods in 2019.
“In contrast, it’s my responsibility. Because I don’t want that to happen again, my wife, family, and I have been discussing how I want to play next year,” he added. He feels that it is challenging to balance. He said that he would make decisions that might not be optimal for his tennis game and that his family would always come first.
Murray and Stan Wawrinka both reversed time in Switzerland, winning different matches in the first round of the Swiss Indoors competition.
Wawrinka advanced to the round of 16 with a commanding 6-4 6-4 victory over No. 2 seed Casper Ruud, and Murray overcame a set deficit to defeat Russian qualifier Roman Safiulin.
With the support of his local audience, Wawrinka, 37, who is currently number 194 in the world, upset the Norwegian who had reached the finals of the French and US Opens. He’ll portray Brandon Nakashima, an American, in the last 16.
Murray prevailed 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4. Murray is vying for the ranking points he needs to secure a top-32 seeding for the Australian Open.
The 35-year-old Scot recorded his highest return since 2016 with his 26th tour-level victory of the year.
Murray, who had only previously competed in the competition once as a youngster in 2005, fought valiantly for two hours and 38 minutes before closing with a flourish to win the final set from a 1-4 deficit by winning five straight games.
The former World No. 1 and current 49th-ranked player claimed that as the match progressed, “I started to command a couple more points and served better.” Roberto Bautista Agut, the sixth seed, advances to face Murray after defeating Serbian qualifier Laslo Djere 6-4, 6-1.
Wawrinka and Murray will face one other in the quarterfinals if they prevail in their second-round matchups.