I can’t have been the only one that assumed Scottish tennis was going to fall off a cliff with the retirement of Andy Murray earlier this year. Given we’d become accustomed to a Scot being at the sharp end of tennis’ biggest tournaments for over a decade, it wasn’t exactly a leap to predict that without him, being a tennis-loving Scot wouldn’t ever be the same again. In some respects, I’m right; yes, there's Cameron Norrie but, at age 29, is nearer the end of his career than the start so watching tennis in 2025 and beyond won’t be the same without Murray.
But there’s been some glimmers that being a Scottish tennis fan without Murray to support won’t be the lost cause that I and many others reasonably thought it might have been. With perfect timing, not one but two young Scottish men have begun to show glimpses that they could, potentially, become truly world-class players. Jake Fearnley and Charlie Robertson, with impeccable precision, have timed their breakthroughs to coincide almost exactly with Murray’s decision to hang up his racquet.
Let’s start with Fearnley, as he’s much further along his journey towards the top of the game. Jake Fearnley has had a breakthrough year in 2024 Until this summer, few outwith the tennis bubble had ever heard of Fearnley due, in large part, to his decision to relocate to America at the age of 18 to study at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas. Now 23, those years honing his skills in the brutal world of US college tennis are pay.