Roger Federer has hailed “true inspiration” Andy Murray in a special message sent to the British star after he retired from tennis on Thursday.
Murray called time on his career after a loss in his Paris 2024 men’s doubles quarter-final, he and compatriot Dan Evans beaten 6-2, 6-4 by American duo Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul.
It was the final tournament of a hugely successful career which saw the 37-year-old win two Olympic singles gold medals, alongside two Wimbledon titles, a US Open triumph, and achieving the world No 1 ranking.
Federer, who retired in 2022, was one of the key rivals of Murray’s career, the two meeting 25 times – the Swiss ace leading the head-to-head 14-11.
His most notable wins came in the 2010 Australian Open and 2012 Wimbledon finals, though Murray prevailed when they met in the Olympic gold medal match at London 2012.
In a special message shared on the ATP social media channels, Federer praised Murray’s “incredible career” – and hailed his rival’s ability to battle on despite injury issues in recent years.
He said: “Hey, Andy. Many, many congratulations my friend on an incredible career.
“Wimbledon champion, US Open champion, Davis Cup champion, Olympic champion, and many more things you have achieved. So many Masters 1000s, world No 1 – and a Sir.
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“So, Sir Andy Murray, incredible effort on the most wonderful of careers, [being a] great human being and doing it all with a massive family at the end – and a hip, and a body, that clearly wasn’t giving you what you wanted anymore at the end.
“But you’ve been a true inspiration to me and many of the players out there, and I’m so happy you could do it as long as you did.
“Just from my side Andy, I have so much respect. I loved playing against you, even though I lost so many times against you – and it was brutal.
“Congrats on everything you have achieved, and everything that’s to come. Only all the best, and I’m sure we’ll see each other down the road.”
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Murray was unable to play one final singles campaign at either Wimbledon or the Olympics due to a recent back issue. Still, he picked up two staggering wins in his final-ever competitive tournament.
He and Evans saved five consecutive match points to beat Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori in round one of the doubles campaign, before again saving match points to defeat Belgians Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen in round two.
Another comeback looked on the cards after the British pair broke Paul and Fritz as they attempted to close out their quarter-final on Court Suzanne Lenglen – though the American’s double break cushion ultimately proved insurmountable.