Coco Gauff praises Andy Murray for helping when few others would

Andy Murray is likely playing his final year of his professional tennis. He has suffered through many severe and various injuries over most of the last decade. Some of the time he has been able to maintain enough form to win tournaments, but in the last several years it has been clear that his injuries have taken a toll.

While Murray has been a fantastic player on the court - he has won three Grand Slams, reached No. 1 on the ATP tour, and won two Olympic gold medals - he has been instrumental away from the court in many ways. He does not mind correcting people when he feels that has been an implication of inequality.

This last part is something Coco Gauff remembers fondly. During a recent post-match press conference during the Italian Open, Gauff brought up when Murray was asked in 2019 during a post-match press conference at Wimbledon about American Sam Querry being the last American to make the semifinals at the grass-court major.

Coco Gauff praises Andy Murray for standing up when few others would

Murray quickly corrected the person who asked the question and clarified that the reporter meant last "American man." American women had been involved in the Wimbledon semifinals more recently than the report implied. Many people might have just let the question go, but Murray did not like that there was an insinuation that simply saying "American" meant a men's player.

In her press conference, Gauff said of Murray's answer, "My favorite video of (Murray) is at the press conference in Wimbledon where he was, like, the first 'male' player. Honestly, it happens a lot in tennis where people say a stat, especially with the guys. I'll be like, Well, I did it...I think for what he's done with the women's game, him and his mother as well, have done a lot. I would say he's one of the first male players to speak up about it."

Whether Murray is one of the first men's players to speak up about equality is up for debate, of course, but doubtless that more important men's players have. Murray was a great player at the wrong time for him as he was in constant battles for titles with Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer. Nadal has spoken about how women's players should be paid the same as men's players if they win tournament titles, but he answered after being asked.

Murray proactively corrected a reporter in 2019 at Wimbledon. He was not trying to be outspoken about a political view, either. He was simply trying to show fairness.

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