Andy Murray backs compulsory Covid-19 vaccinations for professional players

Andy Murray has backed the idea of compulsory Covid-19 vaccinations for anyone intending to play on the pro tennis tour in 2021 – even if it means a personal dilemma for world No 1 Novak Djokovic.

At least three effective vaccines are heading for the market, perhaps not in time for January’s Australian Open, but probably before March – the month when the leading players normally travel to the “Sunshine Double” of Indian Wells and Miami.

Asked on Tuesday whether every player should be required to undergo a jab, Murray replied “Yeah, I think that should probably be the case. I would hope that all the players would be willing to do that for the good of the sport – providing all the clinical trials and everything have been done.”

But what about Djokovic, the man who said in April that “I wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel”? Murray replied “I guess it would be difficult,” before adding that Djokovic has not been categorical in his refusal. “I also read that, if it was something that had to be done for him to play the sport, he would [have the jab]. So I guess we'll have to wait and see.”

The vaccine debate was just one element of a wide-ranging – and surprisingly upbeat – briefing that Murray gave to reporters. Even after a turbulent and injury-ravaged season, he still sees himself playing for big titles in the future.

Such optimism might seem surprising, only six weeks after Murray had ended his competitive year with three successive straight-sets defeats. But he was not running at full power at the time, because of tendinitis in his hip flexor.

“I lasted the five-set match with [Yoshihito] Nishioka,” said Murray, of his gutsy first-round win at the US Open on Sept 1. “That was the first five-set match I've played [since the insertion of a metal hip-joint in January 2019] and I felt really good during it. I just woke up the next day and had this tendinitis.

“Now I’m feeling good,” added Murray. “I’ve got a two-hour session this afternoon with Evo [British No1 Dan Evans]. I’ll start building and hopefully have three, four weeks of high-quality point play in preparation for going over to Australia.

“I haven’t forgotten how to play tennis. I’ve seen enough in the limited amount I have played in the last year. I was beating a top-10 player in Cincinnati, top-50 players, and then obviously at the end of 2019 I was still winning against guys like Stan Wawrinka. I know I will win big matches if I can get properly fit and healthy for an extended period of time.”

So what was Murray’s reaction to Mats Wilander’s suggestion that he is playing on past his sell-by date, as well as occupying space that should be reserved for younger men? As with every piece of criticism he receives, he seized on it as emotional fuel. His latest target is to set a new series of personal bests in the gym, which he said “has been quite exciting for me”.

“It helps,” Murray added, when asked about Wilander’s comments. “I did an interview a couple of days ago with [Amazon Prime commentator] Daniela Hantuchova and she was asking me what was still motivating me. It was something as simple as this body-fat scale, and the readout that I got from that, which I wasn’t happy with.

“I think with my age and also with the metal hip, I can’t really afford to have any chinks or be slightly heavier than I should be or have weaknesses in my body that I maybe could have got away with when I was younger.”

In the same interview, Murray said that his goals for next season include playing at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where he can expect to receive a wild-card invitation as the two-time defending singles champion. Finally, to open a much darker subject, he commented briefly on the domestic-violence allegations hanging over world No7 Alexander Zverev.

Asked about the absence of an official tennis policy in this area, Murray mentioned the fortnight’s delay between Olga Sharypova’s first claims of abuse and the bland ATP Tour statement that eventually arrived. Even then, the ATP said they could not comment on specific allegations without a legal hearing to work from.

“They [the ATP] can be a bit more proactive in a situation like that,” Murray said. “Obviously [we] need to take it extremely seriously and see what comes of it in the coming months.”

Andy Murray wears AMC, a premium tennis clothing brand created and designed by Andy and Castore