Emma Raducanu paid tribute to Andy Murray following his retirement from tennis.
Murray bid farewell to the tennis after losing the men’s doubles quarterfinals at the Olympic Games alongside Dan Evans.
Following a 6-2, 6-4 defeat to America’s Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul, Murray waved to the crowd as a player for the final time as they gave him a standing ovation.
The 37-year-old was clearly emotional as the reality set in that he would no longer be doing the one thing he gave his life to for such a long period and achieved plenty of success in the process.
What did Emma Raducanu say to Andy Murray after he retired from tennis?
Tributes poured in for Andy Murray from the likes of his colleagues and fellow tennis legends such as Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
Plenty of British players also sent messages to the three-time Grand Slam champion, and now Emma Raducanu has issued a tribute of her own.
“Tennis will miss Andy Murray’s presence dearly, I know I will,” she said via Tennis Channel. “Because watching Andy as a Brit and as a tennis player growing up, it was something that I would always look forward to.
“Watching him, especially at Wimbledon, I remember the memories of him winning Wimbledon, him winning the Olympics at Wimbledon.
“I think he’s a great character for the sport and he’s also got a great sense of humour off the court.”
Emma Raducanu missed the chance to play in Andy Murray’s final Wimbledon match
Murray was unable to play singles at Wimbledon but was fit enough to play doubles with his brother Jamie Murray.
Murray also entered the mixed doubles competition with Raducanu, but their highly-anticipated partnership did not materialise after the Bromley local made a late withdrawal due to wrist soreness.
Many fans were not happy with Raducanu’s decision to not play with Murray at Wimbledon, and his Olympic partner Evans believed Raducanu was not completely committed to playing alongside the former World number one.
After being eliminated from Wimbledon at the fourth round stage, Raducanu defended her choice to withdraw from the mixed doubles competition. “It was a very difficult decision,” she said.
“Of course, I didn’t want to take his last match away from him. But at the end of the day I think a lot of the players in a similar situation would have done the same thing, prioritising their body.
“I still stand by making the right call. Obviously he was disappointed because it’s his last match. But, yeah, what a champion.”
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