Following what he described as “the hardest match of my career” Andy Murray was unable to repeat the heroics of his 2020 US Open first-round victory. After an absence of over a year from the Grand Slam scene, a grinding five-set battle lasting over four hours was not what he or his performance team would have wanted. His second-round tie proved too much at this stage of his comeback as he lost in straight sets.
Andy Murray during the Citi Open in Washington DC
His much-publicised return and the nature of his initial win underlined his value as a sporting icon. Murray lives the values of hard work, dedication, and effort visibly while on court. For his latest apparel partner Castore, he is the perfect fit for their range of tennis and training products which he has played an integral part in developing. He combines technical quality and an ethos that demands intensity, effort and sacrifice in order to be the best.
Back in 2019, prior to the Australian Open, Murray had spoken openly about it potentially being his last. Following a first-round loss during which he was visibly in pain, many felt it was indeed the end, if not necessarily to his career, at least to his time in the upper echelons of the game. For many brand partnerships, this would signify the end. But Murray brings something extra to the table. He brings a performance story that perhaps earlier partners didn’t recognise as they were too focused on results and titles.
His lucrative sponsorship with adidas ended in 2014, with the German company believing he had reached the height of his playing potential. Four years with Under Armour saw him retain his Olympic title, add another Wimbledon Championship, a World Tour title and spearhead Great Britain's Davis Cup victory in 2015. While the level of performance is unlikely to return to those of 2012 -2016 his performance story remains compelling. With such public attention surrounding his injury, just playing at the majors is now seen as an achievement. But this isn’t the first time he has battled the odds in order to perform on the biggest stage. Examining research surrounding the development of the game and the players, what Andy has had to do in order to reach those levels is remarkable.
Looking back, players such as John McEnroe and Björn Borg were not only smaller than today’s top players, they were built like endurance athletes. Researchers Gale-Watts & Nevill (2016) went back as far as 1982 to analyse how the physicality of players has changed. The team found that successful players (which they classed as going beyond the third round in Grand Slam tournaments) had increased body mass index (BMI), compared to their less successful opponents, due to an increase in lean muscle mass. To back this up, they also saw a decrease in reciprocal ponderal index (RPI), which, similar to BMI, is a measure of body composition, a lower body fat percentage produces a lower score. The main difference in RPI was again, due to increased muscle mass among the successful players.
As the game becomes more power-based, talented youngsters now face an even tougher challenge to breakthrough. Research by Machar Reid et al, (2014) showed that if male players haven’t made the top 100 by their fourth year on tour, the odds are stacked against them becoming a major success. When looking at this as an age profile, it means that players really have until they are 21 to start to make the major physical gains that will allow them to succeed.
The evidence points to Murray timing his physical development to perfection. The skinny player of 2006 who, at around 70kg, fitted the old body type perfectly, built a team around him that understood the changing demands of the game and were able to adjust his training accordingly. By 2008, following an injury-hit season, he had gained nearly 10kg in fat-free mass and believed he had another 4-5kg of muscle to gain.
Following his physical transformation, Murray went on to scale the heights of men’s tennis. As world number one he and his team looked down at the rest of the tennis world from a solid base of power and strength training that enabled him to cope with the increasing demands of the modern game.
With any apparel partnership, finance obviously plays a significant role. Fred Perry, adidas and Under Armour all had to balance commercial and marketing considerations in order to reach a decision they felt was right for their brands at the time. Murray and his team had to do the same. What Castore, as his current partner, have bought into probably isn’t the titles, the world ranking, or even the previous dominance. But it is a performance story that should, due to Murray’s attributes and if delivered correctly by both parties, have credibility, longevity and crossover appeal beyond both tennis and his remaining days on the court.
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