15 January 2024 , 22:44
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The Australian Open is back for another year, and Andy Murray's tournament is already over. He'll now be a keen spectator for the rest of the tournament - and will hope the scheduling on TV is better than it was in 2022.
Two years ago, Murray directly asked Channel 9 to air the match between Emma Raducanu and Sloane Stephens. He made his displeaure public after the Australian channel's initial focus on two feeds from Rod Laver Arena.
Murray saw that the host broadcaster was showing the match between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Mikael Ymer on both channels. In a tweet at the time, the three-time Wimbledon winner asked Channel 9 to switch one channel to feature the 2021 and 2017 US Open champions in action instead of airing the ongoing Rod Laver match on both channels.
Murray wrote: "Come on, channel 9. Let's get Raducanu/Stephens on one [of] the channels instead of 2x Rod Laver!" Shortly after the tweet, the channel granted the wish, shifting the broadcast to Margaret Court Arena.
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TV decisions are always a controversial subject with various matches taking place simultaneously. But when former Grand Slam winner Murray spoke, bosses clearly listened and granted him his wish.
In the match in question, Raducanu dominated the first set 6-0 against Stephens, showcasing her prowess after winning the US Open the previous September. Murray has steadfastly supported Raducanu, who is now on the comeback trial and back at the Australian Open.
Last June, Murray continued to come to the defense of Raducanu after she struggled with injuries and during a host of matches after winning the US Open in 2021. After Raducanu dropped in the WTA rankings, Murray doubled down on his belief in his compatriot.
Murray was desperate to watch Emma Raducanu take on Sloane Stephens (BRANDON MALONE/AFP via Getty Images)Murray said: "They have had a very good week, and hopefully, they can continue and push their ranking up because all of them are capable of being top 100 players," regarding young British players. "They just need to be out on the tour consistently."
"I don't really know what is considered success for a Grand Slam nation. Is top-100 players what matters? Is it Grand Slam champions? I don't know what it is that people want," he continued. "Before I won Wimbledon, everyone was whinging about us not having a Grand Slam champion. That was the problem. Emma has won, yet there are not enough top-100 players."
Andy Murray could have played his last Australian OpenDuring the first round of this year's Australian Open, No. 30 seed Tomas Etcheverry easily defeated Murray in a convincing 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 victory. Murray expressed his disappointment after losing and acknowledged the significant difference between his performance this year and his heroic battles in previous years. He even admitted to discussing retirement with his team.
“I have an idea of when I would probably like to finish playing. So much of that depends on how you are playing. The time frame for that narrows when you play and have results like today,” he said after the match.] “I haven't made any definite decisions on that. It is obviously something that I need to think about and see exactly when that is.”