Starting the US hard-court season with the 2010 Farmers Classic, Murray reached the final but lost against Sam Querrey in three sets. This was his first loss to Querrey in five career meetings. In Canada, Murray became the first player since Andre Agassi in 1995 to defend the Canadian Masters. Murray defeated Nadal and then Federer in straight sets, ending his eight-month title drought. At the Cincinnati Masters, Murray first complained about the speed of the court, and then in a quarter-final match with Fish, Murray complained that the organisers refused to put the match on later in the day With temperatures reaching 33 °C in the shade, Murray won the first set in a tie-breaker but began to feel ill. The doctor was called on court to actively cool Murray down. Murray said after the match that he had considered retiring. He lost the second set, but forced a final-set tie-breaker, before Fish won. After losing to Stanislas Wawrinka in the third round of the US Open, questions about Murray’s conditioning arose, as he called the trainer out twice during the match.

Leon Smith, Murray’s tennis coach from 11 to 17, described Murray as “unbelievably competitive”, while Murray attributes his abilities to the motivation gained from losing to his older brother Jamie. In 1999, at the age of 12, Murray won his age group at the Orange Bowl, a prestigious event for junior players. He won it again at the age of 14, and is one of only nine tennis players to win the Junior Orange Bowl championship twice in its 70-year history, alongside the likes of Jimmy Connors, Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles, and Yishai Oliel.

In July 2003, Murray started out on the Challenger and Futures circuit. In his first tournament, he reached the quarter-finals of the Manchester Challenger. In September, Murray won his first senior title by taking the Glasgow Futures event. He also reached the semi-finals of the Edinburgh Futures event.

As a junior, Murray reached as high as No. 6 in the world in 2003 (and No. 8 in doubles). In the 2004-instated combined rankings, he reached No. 2 in the world.

In July 2004, Murray played a Challenger event in Nottingham, where he lost to future Grand Slam finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the second round. Murray then went on to win Futures events in Xàtiva and Rome.

In September 2004, he won the Junior US Open and was selected for the Davis Cup World Group play-off match against Austria later that month; however, he was not selected to play. Later that year, he won BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.

Murray began dating Kim Sears, daughter of player-turned-coach Nigel Sears, in 2005. Their engagement was announced in November 2014, and they married on 11 April 2015 at Dunblane Cathedral in his home town, with the reception at his Cromlix House hotel. The couple live in Oxshott, Surrey with their son and two daughters.

Murray began 2005 ranked No. 407, but when he was in South America in January, he hurt his back and had to take three months off.

The 2006 season saw Murray compete on the full circuit for the first time and split with his coach Mark Petchey and team up with Brad Gilbert.

At Cincinnati, Murray became only one of two players, alongside Rafael Nadal, to defeat Roger Federer in 2006, breaking the Swiss star’s 55 match winning streak on hard courts. He lost two rounds later to Andy Roddick, but broke into the top 20 for the first time. In the final two Masters events in Madrid and Paris, Murray exited both tournaments at the last-16 stage ending his season, with losses to Novak Djokovic and Dominik Hrbatý. When the tour reached San Jose, California; Murray defeated a top ten player for the first time, Andy Roddick. Murray went on to claim the SAP Open title defeating No. 11 Lleyton Hewitt. Murray was a finalist at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic. Playing doubles with his brother in Bangkok the pair reached the final. After the French Open, where Murray was injured again, he revealed that his bones hadn’t fully grown, causing him to suffer from cramps and back problems.

In 2006, there was controversy after a match with Kenneth Carlsen. Having been given a warning for racket abuse, Murray went on in the post-match interview to state that he and Carlsen had “played like women” during the first set. Murray was booed for the remark, but said later that the comment had been intended as a jocular response to what Svetlana Kuznetsova had said at the Hopman Cup. A few months later, Murray was fined for swearing at the umpire during a Davis Cup doubles rubber with the Serbia and Montenegro Davis Cup team. Murray refused to shake hands with the umpire at the end of the match.

At the ATP World Tour Finals, Murray lost his opening round robin match to Kei Nishikori but won his second match against Milos Raonic. However, he lost his final group match against Federer in straight sets and only managed to win one game against him, marking his worst defeat since losing to Djokovic in the 2007 Miami Masters, eliminating him from the tournament.

In 2007, Murray suggested that tennis had a match-fixing problem, stating that everyone knows it goes on, in the wake of the investigation surrounding Nikolay Davydenko. Both Davydenko and Rafael Nadal questioned his comments, but Murray responded that his words had been taken out of context.

In 2008, Murray suffered a first round loss at the Australian Open to eventual runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and a third round loss at the French Open to Nicolás Almagro. Murray then made his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon before making his first final at the US Open. During the tournament in New York, Murray claimed his first win over Nadal. That victory meant that he’d become the first player from Britain since Greg Rusedski in 1997 to reach a major final. In his first Grand Slam final Murray suffered a straight sets loss to Federer. At the Beijing Olympics, Murray suffered one of the worst defeats of his career, losing his first round singles match to No. 77 Yen-hsun Lu of Taiwan in straight sets. That abject defeat was still on his mind in a BBC interview five years later – despite an intervening Olympic gold medal and a head-to-head win – when he met the same player (now ranked No. 75) in the second round of Wimbledon 2013.

In the lead-up to the French Open, Murray beat No. 9, Nikolay Davydenko at the Monte Carlo Masters, the first time he had beaten a top ten player on clay, though he lost to Nadal in the semi-finals. Murray was upset in round two of the Rome Masters by qualifier Juan Mónaco, and he reached the quarter-finals of the Madrid Masters, losing to Juan Martín del Potro. During this time Murray achieved the highest ever ranking of a British male in the Open Era when he reached the No. 3 ranking on 11 May 2009. Murray reached the quarter-finals of the French Open, but was defeated by Fernando González in four sets.

In March, Murray split with coach Ivan Lendl, who had been widely praised for helping Murray achieve his goal of winning Grand Slam titles. At the 2014 Miami Masters, Murray defeated Matthew Ebden, Feliciano López and Jo Wilfried Tsonga but lost to Djokovic in the quarter-finals. In the Davis Cup quarter-finals against Italy, he beat Andreas Seppi in his first rubber, then teamed up with Colin Fleming to win the doubles rubber. Murray had only beaten one top ten player on clay, Nikolay Davydenko, back in 2009, and so in his final singles match, was stunned by Fabio Fognini in straight sets, which took Great Britain to the deciding final rubber. However, in this match his compatriot, James Ward was defeated by Andreas Seppi, also in straight sets, knocking Murray and Great Britain out of the Davis Cup.

Murray has played against Rafael Nadal on 24 occasions since 2007, with Nadal leading 17–7. Nadal leads 7–2 on clay, 3–0 on grass and 7–5 on hard courts. The pair regularly meet at Grand Slam level, with nine out of their twenty-four meetings coming in slams, with Nadal leading 7–2 (3–0 at Wimbledon, 2–0 at the French Open, 1–1 at the Australian Open and 1–1 at the US Open). Eight of these nine appearances have been at quarter-final and semi-final level. They have never met in a slam final, however, Murray leads 3–1 in ATP finals, with Nadal winning at Indian Wells in 2009 and Murray winning in Rotterdam the same year, Tokyo in 2011, and at Madrid in 2015.

Murray and Stan Wawrinka have played 21 times with Murray leading 12–9. Murray leads 8–4 on hard courts and 3–0 on grass courts while Wawrinka leads 5–1 on clay courts. They have also met seven times in Grand Slam tournaments with Wawrinka holding a slight 4-3 edge. They have contested some close matches and one of their most notable meetings was in the 2009 Wimbledon fourth round, which Murray won in five sets; this was the first men’s match to be played under the Wimbledon roof, having the latest finish for a Wimbledon match at the time. Wawrinka also ended Murray’s title defence at the 2013 US Open quarter-finals with a comfortable straight sets victory. Other close matches between the two include three-set wins for Murray at the 2008 Canada Open and 2011 Shanghai Masters, and the 2010 US Open which Wawrinka won in four sets.

Murray plays an all-court game with an emphasis on defensive baseline play, and in 2009 professional tennis coach Paul Annacone stated that Murray “may be the best counterpuncher on tour today.” His strengths include groundstrokes with low error rate, the ability to anticipate and react, and his transition from defence to offence with speed, which enables him to hit winners from defensive positions. His playing style has been likened to that of Miloslav Mečíř. Murray also has one of the best two-handed backhands on the tour, with dynamic stroke execution while he primarily uses his forehand, which is more passive, and a sliced backhand to let opponents play into his defensive game before playing more offensively. Tim Henman stated in 2013 that Murray may have the best lob in the game, succeeding Lleyton Hewitt. Murray’s tactics often involve passive exchanges from the baseline. He is capable of injecting sudden pace into his groundstrokes to surprise his opponents who are used to the slow rally. Murray is also one of the top returners in the game, often able to block back fast serves with his excellent reach and ability to anticipate. For this reason, Murray is rarely aced.

In 2009, German manufacturer Adidas and Murray signed a five-year-deal worth £30 million. This included wearing their range of tennis shoes. The contract with Adidas allowed Murray to keep his shirt sleeve sponsors Shiatzy Chen, Royal Bank of Scotland and Highland Spring. Before he was signed by Adidas in late 2009, he wore Fred Perry apparel. At the end of their contract together Adidas decided not to re-sign with Murray, and he began a 4-year partnership with athletic apparel company Under Armour in December 2014, reportedly worth $25 million. Murray signed with Castore for the 2019 season which Murray called his last deal before announcing his retirement.

Murray is a founding member of the Malaria No More UK Leadership Council and helped launch the charity in 2009 with David Beckham. Footage from the launch at Wembley Stadium can be seen on YouTube and the charity’s website. Murray also made ‘Nets Needed’, a short public service announcement, for the charity to help raise awareness and funds to help in the fight against malaria. Murray has also taken part in several charity tennis events, including the Rally for Relief events that took place prior to the start of the 2011 Australian Open.

After playing an exhibition match, Murray started the French Open with three tough wins, before losing in straight sets to Tomáš Berdych in the fourth round. In London, Murray progressed to the third round, where he faced Mardy Fish. At 3–3 in the final set with momentum going Murray’s way (he had just come back from 3–0 down), the match was called off for bad light, leaving Murray fuming. Coming back the next day, Murray was edged out by the eventual finalist in a tie-breaker for his second defeat by him in the year. At Wimbledon, Murray progressed to the semi-finals, losing to Nadal in straight sets. On 27 July 2010, Murray and his coach Maclagan split, and Murray replaced him with Àlex Corretja.

In the second Master Series tournament of the US Hard Court season, the Cincinnati Masters, Murray defeated veteran Mardy Fish in the second round, and then beat both Grigor Dimitrov and Richard Gasquet in three-set matches, having to come from a set down on both occasions, while Dimitrov had served for the match in the deciding set. In the semi-final, he lost to defending champion Roger Federer in straight sets, and after Federer went on to win the tournament, this result saw Murray return to the No. 3 ranking and seeding for the US Open. At the US Open, Murray beat Nick Kyrgios in four sets before beating Adrian Mannarino in five sets after being two sets down, equaling Federer for winning eight matches from two sets to love down. He then beat Thomaz Bellucci in straight sets but suffered a defeat in the fourth round to Kevin Anderson in four sets. This ended Murray’s five-year run of 18 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals (not counting his withdrawal from the 2013 French Open) since his third round loss to Stan Wawrinka in the 2010 US Open.

Murray and Roger Federer have met 25 times with Federer leading 14–11. Federer leads 12–10 on hard courts, 2–1 on grass, and they have never met on clay. They have met six times at the Grand Slam tournament level, with Federer leading 5–1. After Federer won the first professional match they played, Murray dominated the first half of the rivalry, with an 8–5 lead in 2010. The second half of the rivalry has been dominated by Federer, who leads 9–3 since 2011, and has led their rivalry since the 2014 ATP World Tour Finals. Federer leads 5–3 in finals, having won each of their Grand Slam Final meetings at the 2008 US Open and 2010 Australian Open, both of which Federer won in straight sets, and the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, where Murray took the first set, but ended up losing in 4 sets. Murray leads 6–3 in ATP 1000 tournaments and 2–0 in finals. They have met five times at the ATP World Tour Finals, with Murray winning in Shanghai in 2008 and Federer coming out victorious in London in 2009, 2010, 2012, and in 2014.

Seeded fifth in the 2011 Australian Open, Murray met former champion Novak Djokovic in the final and was defeated in straight sets. In Rotterdam, he was defeated by Marcos Baghdatis in the first round. Murray reached the semi-finals of the doubles tournament with his brother Jamie. Murray lost to qualifiers in the first rounds at the Masters Series events in Indian Wells and Miami, after which he split with coach Àlex Corretja.

Murray easily won the small 250-class Thailand Open, and the following week he won his third title in four tournaments at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. His opponent in the final was Rafael Nadal, whom he beat for the first time in the year in three sets. Murray then won the doubles with his brother Jamie Murray, becoming the first person in the 2011 season to capture both singles and doubles titles at the same tournament. Murray then successfully defended his Shanghai Masters crown with a straight-sets victory over David Ferrer in the final. At the ATP World Tour Finals, Murray lost to David Ferrer in straight sets and withdrew from the tournament after the loss with a groin pull. Murray ended the year ranked #4, behind Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer, for the fourth consecutive year.

Murray lost three consecutive Grand Slam semi-finals to Nadal in 2011 from the French Open to the US Open. The pair had not met for three years since the final of the 2011 Japan Open until the quarter-finals of the 2014 Rome Masters, although they were scheduled to meet in the semi-final of the 2012 Miami Masters before Nadal withdrew with injury. At the semi-final stage of the 2014 French Open, Nadal triumphed in a dominant straight sets win for the loss of just 6 games. In one of their most recent meetings, Murray beat Nadal for the first time on clay, and the first time in a Masters 1000 final, at the Madrid Open in 2015. Murray fell to Nadal in the semi-finals of the 2016 Monte Carlo Masters, despite taking the first set. Three weeks later they met again at the semi-final stage of the 2016 Madrid Open, this time Murray winning the match in straight sets.

With Ivan Lendl as his new full-time coach, Murray began the season by playing in the 2012 Brisbane International. He overcame a slow start in his first two matches to win his 22nd title by beating Alexandr Dolgopolov in the final. In doubles, he lost in the quarter-finals against second seeds Jürgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner in a tight match. After an exhibition tournament, Murray made it to the semi-finals of the 2012 Australian Open, where he was defeated by Djokovic in a four-hour-and 50-minute match.

After strong grass court seasons in 2012 and 2013, Murray was seeded third for the 2014 Wimbledon Championship, behind Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, who were seeded first and second respectively. He began his title defence with straight sets wins over David Goffin and Blaž Rola, defeating the latter for the loss of just two games. Murray continued his good form, defeating Roberto Bautista Agut and Kevin Anderson, the 27th and 20th seeds, again in straight sets to reach his seventh consecutive Wimbledon quarter-final. Murray’s defence then came to a halt as Grigor Dimitrov ended his 17 match winning-streak on the grass of Wimbledon (this includes the 2012 Olympics) with a straight sets win, meaning Murray failed to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2008. After his defeat at the Championships, Murray dropped to No. 10, his lowest ranking since 2008.

They also played a nearly five-hour long semi-final match in the 2012 Australian Open, which Djokovic won 7–5 in the fifth set after Murray led 2 sets to 1. Murray and Djokovic met again in 2012 at the London 2012 Olympic Games, with Murray winning in straight sets. During the final of the 2012 Shanghai Masters, Murray held five championship points in the second set, however Djokovic saved each of them, forcing a deciding set. He eventually prevailed to win his first Shanghai Masters title, ending Murray’s 12–0 winning streak at the event. The three set matches they played in Rome and Shanghai in 2011 and 2012 respectively were voted the ATP World Tour Match of the Year for each respective season. Due to the tight competition between 2008 and 2013, many saw this as the emerging rivalry. Djokovic went on to dominate the rivalry after the 2013 Wimbledon final, winning 13 of their last 16 matches. In 2016, Murray suffered his 4th loss (his 5th total) in the final of the Australian Open from Djokovic, then the Serbian defeated the British player in four sets in the Roland Garros final, where Djokovic won his first Roland Garros title and completed the Career Grand Slam.Murray and Djokovic met in the final at the year’s end final of the ATP World Tour Finals for the first time in their rivalry, where the winner would be granted the Year-end No. 1 status. Djokovic, dropped only one set en route to the final at the ATP World Tour Finals, but lost in straight sets to Murray, who finished the year at No. 1 and became the first British player to achieve this feat.

In August 2012, Murray met Federer in the final of the London 2012 Olympics at Wimbledon Centre Court, just four weeks after the 2012 Wimbledon Final, in which Federer had defeated Murray to win his record-tying 7th title at the All-England Club. Murray defeated Federer in straight sets to win the gold medal, denying Federer a Career Golden Slam. In 2013 Murray beat Federer for the first time in a major in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, prevailing in five sets after Federer had come back twice from a set down. Their last grand slam meeting was at the 2015 Wimbledon Championships semi-finals, where a dominant Federer defeated Murray in straight sets, earning a place in his 10th Wimbledon final. Murray is one of only three players to have recorded 10 or more victories over Federer, the other two being Nadal and Djokovic. Their most recent meeting took place at the 2015 Cincinnati Masters semi-finals, with Federer winning the match in two close sets, recording his fifth consecutive victory over Murray.

In June 2012, the Swiss watch manufacturer Rado announced that Murray had signed a deal to wear their D-Star 200 model.

In February 2013, Murray bought Cromlix House hotel near Dunblane for £1.8 million. Brother Jamie had celebrated his wedding there in 2010 but it had since ceased trading. The venue re-opened as a 15-room five-star hotel in April 2014. Later that month Murray was awarded freedom of Stirling and received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Stirling in recognition of his services to tennis.

Murray was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to tennis.

In June 2013, Murray teamed up with former British No. 1 Tim Henman for a charity doubles match against Murray’s coach and eight-time grand slam champion Ivan Lendl, and No. 6 Tomáš Berdych at the Queen’s Club in London. The event named Rally Against Cancer was organised to raise money for Royal Marsden Cancer Charity after his best friend and fellow British player Ross Hutchins was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The event took place following the final day of competitive play at the AEGON Championships, on Sunday 16 June. Subsequently, following his victory at the tournament, Murray donated his entire prize money pot to The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.

After defeating Nikolay Davydenko at Wimbledon 2012, Murray pointed upwards with both hands and wagged them back and forth while looking to the sky. Murray declined to reveal the reason, and ever since, he has continued to celebrate his victories with this gesture. Murray marked his first Wimbledon title in 2013 with the same victory salute. Then in his book Seventy-Seven; My Path to Wimbledon Glory, released in November 2013, Murray said: “The real reason is that around that time I had a few friends and family who had various issues affecting them . . . I knew that they would be watching and I wanted to let them know I was thinking of them.”

After winning the Brisbane International in January 2013, he dedicated the victory to his friend Ross Hutchins who had been diagnosed with cancer in December 2012. Hutchins confirmed that Murray’s victory salute after this win was a sign to him.

In June 2014, following the death of Elena Baltacha due to liver cancer, Murray featured in an event known as ‘Rally for Bally’. Murray played at Queen’s Club alongside Victoria Azarenka, Martina Hingis, Heather Watson and his brother Jamie. The event raised money for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity and the Elena Baltacha Academy of Tennis. Children from Baltacha’s academy took to the court to play alongside Murray. As a result of his various charitable exploits, Murray was awarded the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year award for 2014.

Murray initially refused to endorse either side of the debate in the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence, citing the abuse he had received after his England-World Cup comments in 2006. Just before the referendum, Murray tweeted a message that was considered by the media to be supportive of independence. He received online abuse for expressing his opinion, including messages that were described as “vile” by Police Scotland; one referred to the Dunblane massacre. A few days after the vote, in which a 55% majority opposed Scottish independence, Murray said that he did not regret stating his view, but said that it was out of character and that he would concentrate on his tennis career in the future.

In June 2016, Ivan Lendl agreed to return to his former role as Murray’s coach. Murray started his grass season at the 2016 Aegon Championships as the 1st seed and the defending champion. Murray defeated Nicolas Mahut in straight sets despite facing a set point in the first set and three set points in the second set. He then defeated his countryman Aljaž Bedene in straight sets. He then had three set wins over Kyle Edmund, another countryman, and No. 5 seed Marin Čilić. In the final he was down a set and a break to 3rd seed Milos Raonic. Murray still managed to come back and win a record 5th Queen’s Club Championships and it was also his 2nd title in 2016. Murray then played at the third major of the year at the 2016 Wimbledon Championships as the 2nd seed. Murray had straight set wins over Liam Broady, Lu Yen-hsun, John Millman, and Nick Kyrgios in the first four rounds. Murray then defeated 12th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in five sets in the quarter-final and 10th seed Tomáš Berdych in straight sets to reach his third straight major final. In the final on 10 July, Murray defeated Raonic in straight sets to win his second Wimbledon title and third major title overall. His Wimbledon crown was his 3rd title of the season and 38th career Tour title.

Murray has not commented on his personal opinion on Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. However, following his win at Wimbledon in 2016, he expressed his surprise at the outcome of the referendum in the UK and added that “it’s important that everyone comes together to make the best of it.”

Murray was knighted in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to tennis and charity. He opened the season with a loss in the semi-finals of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship to David Goffin, following which he won against Milos Raonic in the third-place play-off. Murray then reached the final of the Qatar Open, but lost to Novak Djokovic in three sets despite saving three championship points. At the Australian Open he lost in the fourth round against Mischa Zverev in four sets.

Murray missed the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Masters due to his hip injury, which led to him losing his No. 1 ranking to Rafael Nadal. His injury then forced him to withdraw from the 2017 US Open two days before the start of the tournament, making it the first Grand Slam tournament he had missed since the 2013 French Open. Murray then withdrew from the Asian hard court swing and said it was “most likely” that he would not play in a professional tournament again in 2017. Ultimately he did indeed not play again, withdrawing from Paris which left him unable to qualify for the 2017 ATP Finals; that November, as a result of his inactivity, his ranking fell sharply to No. 16, his lowest ranking since May 2008. Murray returned to the court to play a charity match against Federer in Glasgow and expressed his hope to return to the tour in Brisbane. The following week, he and Ivan Lendl announced that they had mutually ended their coaching arrangement for a second time.

At the end of November 2019, a television documentary, Andy Murray: Resurfacing, was released on the Amazon Prime platform, detailing Murray’s various attempts to overcome his hip injury over a two-year period from his defeat at Wimbledon in 2017 to his doubles victory at Queen’s Club in 2019. In late December, Murray’s team confirmed that the pelvic injury which had curtailed his involvement in the Davis Cup would also prevent him from entering the upcoming 2020 Australian Open and the inaugural ATP Cup.

Bob Bryan urged Murray to have the “Birmingham hip (BHR)” operation he underwent in August 2018, involving a cobalt-chrome metal cap being placed over the femur with a matching metal cup in the acetabulum (a conservative bone-saving alternative to a traditional Total Hip Replacement). Bryan informed Murray that the BHR would improve his quality of life and may help him return to the professional tennis tour. On 29 January, Murray announced on Instagram that he had undergone hip resurfacing surgery in London and hoped that it would “be the end of my hip pain.” On 4 February, in an interview with The Times, Professor Derek McMinn, who invented the BHR implant and procedure, gave the opinion that Murray’s chances of returning to competitive tennis should be “in the high 90 per cent”. On 7 March, Murray stated in an interview that he was now free of pain in his hip as a result of the surgery and may therefore return to playing competitive tennis, but that any potential Wimbledon return would be dependent on how his hip felt, and that he would not rush his comeback and may test his condition by playing doubles.

On 11 January 2019, at a press conference just prior to the Australian Open, an emotional Murray announced that he could possibly retire from professional tennis due to struggling physically for a “long time”, particularly with his hip injury. He said that he had been suffering with hip pain on a daily basis, and that it caused him to struggle with tasks like putting his shoes and socks on. He spoke of the possibility of a second hip surgery, but expressed doubt this would be a viable option to prolong his career, merely allowing him to “have a better quality of life, and be out of pain”. He hoped to make it through to Wimbledon, but that the Australian Open could be his final tournament if he was not able to last until the summer, stating: “I’m not sure I can play through the pain for another four or five months”. Active and retired tennis players, including Juan Martín del Potro, Kyle Edmund, Bilie Jean King and the other members of the ‘Big Four’ paid tribute to Murray upon his announcement.

On 16 May 2019, Murray received his knighthood from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace, two years after he was awarded the honour.

In September 2019, Murray participated in the inaugural Zhuhai Championships, losing to eventual champion Alex de Minaur in the second round. He also participated in the China Open, where he recorded a win against Matteo Berrettini, ranked 13th in the world, but he was eliminated by eventual champion Dominic Thiem in the quarter-final. Murray lost against 12th ranked Fabio Fognini in the second round of the Shanghai Open, before winning the first title after his operation in the European Open in October 2019, beating three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka in the final. In November 2019, he represented Great Britain for the first time since 2016 after being named in the squad for the 2019 Davis Cup finals; however, he was only able to play one rubber in Great Britain’s run to the semi-finals.

He identifies himself as a feminist, and has been repeatedly vocal in his support for women players and coaches. In June 2020, he also lent his support to the Black Lives Matter movement; he and fellow players took a knee during the Schroders Battle of the Brits. Just before the 2020 US Open, he said he was “fully supportive” of Naomi Osaka’s decision to sit out her semi-final match at the Western & Southern Open in the wake of Jacob Blake’s shooting in Wisconsin.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous tournaments on the 2020 ATP Tour were either cancelled or re-scheduled for later in the year. Murray’s first ATP tournament of 2020 was at the Western & Southern Open in August in which he entered as a wildcard. He beat Frances Tiafoe in the first round before beating world number 7 Alexander Zverev in the second, his first victory over a top-10 player in over three years. He lost his third round match to Milos Raonic in straight sets.