Andy Murray to quit Australian Open if wife goes into labour

Andy Murray says he’s ready to leave the Australian Open early so as not to miss the birth of his first child.

Andy Murray’s wife Kim Sears, left, and coach Amelie Mauresmo, right, watch him in the men’s final against Novak Djokovic at the last Australian Open.

Andy Murray says he’s prepared to leave the Australian Open early so as not to miss the birth of his first child. His wife Kim Sears isn’t due until mid-February, but Murray is ready to withdraw from the first major of the year if she goes into labour prematurely.

“I’d go home. For sure, yes,” Murray said. “I want to make sure at the beginning I am there as much as I can be to try and help out, just be there for whatever is really required of me.”

The Australian Open, where Murray has been runner-up four times, runs from January 18-31 at Melbourne Park.

Regardless of his result there, Murray says he’s taking all of of February off and won’t play again until the first round of the Davis Cup in early March at home against Japan. Britain will be defending the trophy that Murray led them to last month.

The world No 2 is looking forward to becoming a father.

“I am excited about that,” he said. “People have asked me, ‘Do you think it will be a distraction?’ It might be a distraction but it’s a good distraction.

“It’s actually not good to all the time be just concentrating on tennis and you’re training all of the time. It is important, when you finish on the practice court, to be able to just go away and be with your friends and your family.”

Murray was reunited in Dubai this week with coach Amelie Mauresmo, and met her first child Aaron, who was born in August. Murray hadn’t seen her since Wimbledon.

“I really enjoy working with her,” he said. “The last six months not seeing her, it’s just nice to have her back as part of the team and get that continuity going again.”

His belief that Mauresmo can help him to add to his two grand-slam titles led to the Scot’s decision to release Jonas Bjorkman from his coaching team. Bjorkman has been responsible for encouraging Murray into adopting a far more proactive game this year, attacking the net and sharpening his volleying skills. However, the improvements did not lead to a third grand slam title.

After leading Britain to the Davis Cup title and ending the year as world No 2, his best finish, Murray has decreed that his objective for next year is to justify his position as one of the “big four” in the men’s game by winning more grand slam titles.

Although Murray’s 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon titles were laudable at the time, he is aware that his collection appears scant beside the 17 titles of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal’s 14 and Novak Djokovic’s rapidly growing haul which currently stands at 10. And while the Scot will add a subsidiary coach to his team, he believes that his best chance of recovering lost ground is by putting Mauresmo in sole charge.

“For me, there were a lot of positives last year,” Murray said. “But the last step is the most important thing and we need to work hard together to get back to winning the slams. I’ve just got to find the way to get the wins against the top players in the biggest matches again.”

In the past, Murray has complained that having two lead coaches at one time, as he experienced with Miles Maclagan and Alex Corretja, can result in conflicting messages.

So with Mauresmo eager to commit, Bjorkman’s short-term contract will conclude at the end of the month.

Murray’s plans in the new year involve appointing a subsidiary coach to function in the same way as Dani Vallverdu did before the pair fell out after the appointment of Mauresmo in June 2014last year. The requirement is for somebody that Murray knows and likes, who preferably lives in London and can work with the world No. 2 whenever he is at home in the south of England. Jamie Delgado, the former Britain Davis Cup player who coaches Gilles Muller, would perfectly fit the bill along with Colin Beecher, one of the Britain Davis Cup squad’s coaches, and James Trotman, who recently parted from Kyle Edmund.

The Times, Agencies