Andy Murray’s family question absence of former Wimbledon champion from poster
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Britain's Andy Murray in action against Australia's Alex de Minaur at Queen's Club.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – Andy Murray’s brother and uncle have expressed their anger over the treatment of the two-time Wimbledon champion after he was omitted from an official poster of past and present greats.
The outrage occurred after the All England Club posted an image of 15 famous players walking down a staircase on its social media channels. Under the words “Here’s to the next generation of headline acts”, young players such as Italy’s Jannik Sinner and world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain – neither of whom have made an impact at the championships yet – stand in the foreground.
Behind them are a selection of “epic” rivalries including Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe, Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova and Serena and Venus Williams.
But Murray, who ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a men’s champion in 2013, is nowhere to be seen.
His uncle, Niall Erskine, tweeted underneath the image: “Appalling at every level, all about the men in the forefront and your own British history-maker nowhere to be seen.
“You should be ashamed of yourselves.”
Jamie Murray, who has been competing along with his brother at Queen’s Club this week, replied to Wimbledon’s Instagram post with “Where’s @andymurray?”
He added: “Didn’t they talk about the Big Four for 10 years until he smashed his hip to pieces when he was world No. 1?”
Illustrator Grant Gruenhaupt responded by saying more paintings are planned.
“Worry not Jamie, there are more paintings on the way,” he said.
He added of his current illustration: “Back with Wimbledon on another fun series celebrating historic moments and players!
“This one featuring the greatest rivalries of the past and present as they make the historic walk through the clubhouse and onto Centre Court.
“A lot of nuance in this one.
“Definitely one of the more challenging scenes I’ve had to tackle.”
Jamie and partner Michael Venus lost their first-round doubles match at the Queen’s Club Championships against Matthew Ebden and Rohan Bopanna in two tiebreaks.
Andy, currently ranked 38th in singles, was due to play in the doubles alongside fellow Briton Cameron Norrie on Wednesday. But the 36-year-old, who was knocked out of the singles on Tuesday, has withdrawn from the event. AFP
