It was the heartfelt hug that said: “Thanks for all the sacrifices you’ve made for me over the years, Mum and Dad, this one is for you.”
For a brief moment, the Murray clan were once again united in unbridled joy. Dressed in black tie, a relaxed-looking Andy, 33, looks overcome with emotion.
The former men’s Wimbledon champion beams as he embraces his parents, Judy and William, at the annual Winners’ Ball. But behind the broad smiles is a story of family pain, heartache and enormous sacrifice.
Murray’s parents split up when he was 10 – a decision they have described as “difficult”.
He and his older brother, doubles player Jamie, lived with their father, although Judy remained nearby and was closely involved in their upbringing.
In a recent interview, William said he was left to raise the boys, who are just a year apart, after Judy walked out of the family home in Dunblane. But because of Judy’s higher profile at court side, many people unfairly assumed he was as an absent father.
A regional manager for RS McColl newsagents, he proudly maintains he cooked and cleaned for the boys until Andy left for Barcelona to pursue his dream of being a professional tennis player.
He said he “kept the family home and looked after them for the next four or five years” after Judy left. “A lot of people don’t realise that because the story isn’t portrayed that way. That’s fine by me because the boys know exactly what happened.”
He added: “Since Andy and Jamie have been in the public eye for the last couple of years, Judy has always been there with them. That’s just the way it’s worked out and I’m not the kind who runs out and demands publicity.
“To me, it’s just about Andy and Jamie. They are the people that count and as long as they are happy, that’s all that matters.
“Most people get the impression I was an absent father. That was not – and is not – the case. I’m happy to stand back in the shadows so long as the facts are right.”
While the Murray boys have unfairly been accused of lacking charisma, it is clear their parents’ break-up had a profound effect.
Famous for his prickly demeanour, Murray has previously opened up about the heartache he experienced throughout the split, saying: “I would get really upset.
“One of the things I would have loved to have had was a family that worked better together, although I love my mother and father to bits.”
Judy Murray and Andy Murray
William has spoken about the time he broke the news that he and Judy were separating. He said: “I had to tell them that their mum was leaving home.
“It ripped me apart to have to hurt them by telling them what I did. They were distraught. They are very different personalities but they took the news much the same way.”
William and Judy raised £30,000 a year to send their son to tennis academy in Spain and when he broke into the world’s top 100 in 2005 she burst into tears at his text. It simply said: “I did it Mum”.
Speaking about the special bond he shares with his mother, Andy has said: “I can’t remember the last time I was in an argument with her. My mum’s the one person who gets me, who understands me really well.”
An ever-present spectator at his matches, Judy, captain of the British Fed Cup team, has been portrayed as everything from inspirational to a selfish, pushy parent.
Never one of the game’s more genteel spectators, she once received a torrent of vicious hate mail when it was thought her presence was hampering Andy’s progress.
Andy Murray and Mum
Towards the end of his son’s phenomenal Wimbledon run, William too was spotted seated in the area reserved for players’ coaches and family. He chose not to sit next to his former wife. His partner of 10 years is Sam Watson, an optician and mother-of-two.
As has become customary wherever Andy plays, Judy sat in the stands throughout Wimbledon fortnight, gritting her teeth and pumping her fists when her youngest son hit a winner.
The talented former tennis professional has been the driving force behind her sons’ success. She has previously hinted her ambition to be a pro may have cost her marriage, saying: “I was away a lot and then you are coaching until late. Your domestic life gets hit for six.” William simply said: “Tennis may have played a part in our break-up.”
Andy Murray and Kim Sear, his dear wife
But on a golden, unforgettable Sunday afternoon, it was also tennis that brought the Murray family together once more.
