Andy Murray has announced his retirement from tennis. During an emotional press conference in Australia at the start of January, Murray expressed his frustration and upset that he was unable to play at his best due to a persistent hip injury.

Murray explained that he “can still play at a level, but not a level that [he] is happy playing at” and went on to elaborate “the pain is too much.” In spite of a hip operation, he had in 2017 to improve his condition, playing tennis has not stopped being painful, so he plans to make Wimbledon this July his swan song. The pain was so much during this month’s Australian Open, however, that he might not make it to Wimbledon.

The 31-year-old has enjoyed a career studded with huge accomplishments. He spent 41 weeks ranked world number 1 in the Emirates ATP Ranking, making him the first British singles player to achieve the title. He has won three Grand Slams and been in eleven Grand Slam finals, won two gold medals at the Olympics, and led the British team to victory in the Davis Cup.It seems Murray has been left at the wayside before his time. For all his achievements, Murray has earned his place as one of the best tennis players of our time, yet he has been reduced to retirement at a relatively young age compared to the other top tennis players he’s been competing against like Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Such is the damage tennis has inflicted on Murray’s body: he says he has been playing tennis painfully for some years now, explaining in the press conference that “I needed to have an end point, because I was playing with no idea when the pain was going to stop.”

It is the tough competition that Murray has been up against in his career that has pushed his body to breaking point, but this same competition has propelled Murray’s game to new heights, making him one of the world’s greatest tennis players.

A hugely accomplished player, being up against some of tennis’ best players of all time has surely challenged Murray to better his best, forging a fantastic player into one so high-calibre that he will be remembered as one of tennis’ greats.