Murray’s thanks for Lendl as pair split after two glorious years
WIMBLEDON champion Andy Murray has vowed to take his time searching for a new coach after he and Ivan Lendl surprised the tennis world yesterday by announcing the end of their hugely successful two-year alliance.
Murray, who ended his wait for major honours by winning the US Open, Wimbledon and an Olympic gold medal under Lendl’s tutelage, said he was indebted to the Czech for his breakthrough spell in 2012-13.
The Scot, in Miami to defend his Sony Open title, said: “I’m eternally grateful to Ivan for all his hard work over the past two years, the most successful of my career so far. As a team, we’ve learned a lot and it will definitely be of benefit in the future. I’ll take some time with the team to consider the next steps and how we progress from here.”
Former world No1 Lendl, 54, hinted that the split was down to a desire to play more tournaments on the senior tour.
“Working with Andy over the last two years has been a fantastic experience for me,” said the eight-time grand slam winner, who was Murray’s sixth coach.
“He is a first class guy. Having helped him achieve his goal of winning major titles, I feel like it is time for me to concentrate on some of my own projects moving forward including playing more events around the world which I am really enjoying.
“I will always be in Andy’s corner and wish him nothing but great success as he too goes into a new phase of his career.”
Murray, 26, has struggled for form since undergoing back surgery late last year that saw him miss the ATP World Tour Finals in London. He helped Great Britain beat United States in last month’s Davis Cup tie and is set to lead the team again next month when they face Italy in the quarter-finals.