Another tennis tournament has come and gone with Andy Murray leaving the city where it was held without seeing anything other than the airport.

Murray’s whistle-stop tennis tour

In fact, Murray’s recurring string of first-round exits at tournaments hasn’t been lost on those who work in the aviation industry. This was evident before the Paris Masters after the Ryanair pilot who dropped Murray off at Charles de Gaulle Airport asked the Scot while he was disembarking if he should keep the plane running. 

Having never laughed at a joke in his life before, this admittedly wasn’t the time for someone to see if Murray was in a self-deprecating mood. 

As you can see I'm chuffed to bits with my Christmas jumper #FireInTheBelly pic.twitter.com/qImylslFWG

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) December 26, 2014

The reality is that Murray may want to wear his headphones as he leaves the plane in the future as these types of quips are likely to carry on, especially when you consider that most of the tennis bets being made on the biggest upcoming tournaments are on him to be beaten. At 50/1 to win Wimbledon in 2024, it’s easy to understand why Murray might be considered a walking win for his opponents. 

Needless to say, these bleak projections coupled with Murray’s usual glass-half-empty outlook on life have left the Scot in an even worse mood than usual. Murray even admitted during his post-match press conference after his first-round exit at the Paris Masters that he wasn’t enjoying tennis anymore. 

Andy Murray admits he’s not enjoying playing tennis after Paris disappointmenthttps://t.co/7HvXRSDEr9

— PA Sport (@pasport) October 30, 2023

This statement would have come as an almighty shock to tennis fans as they were all under the impression that Murray had never enjoyed tennis. Indeed, the possibility that Murray had actually been happy over the years as he shouted as his loved ones sat in a courtside box while scowling at the umpire caught many by surprise. 

It also prompted fans to ask why Murray is the way he is. The answer is that Suffolk, and the small town of Framlingham, might be the root cause of Murray’s temperament. 

Thanks but no thanks for the music, Ed 

The reason is simple: this is where Ed Sheeran grew up and the ginger songwriter is the artist that Murray chooses to listen to before he goes out to play. Had Sheeran not been overwhelmed by dull grey skies and the flattest landscape on earth while finding his way in Framlingham, then perhaps he wouldn’t have written songs asking ‘When Will I Be Alright’ and ‘Blue.’

Alas, he did, and the result is that Murray has been head-bopping to these mood-killers in the locker room before his matches; it’s little surprise that he gets onto the court and proceeds to have a meltdown.

The good news is that for Murray to finally advance past the first round, all he needs to do is change his flow on Spotify. Indeed, the sooner he ditches Sheeran’s melancholy musings about early life in Suffolk and begins cranking up Tina Turner’s ‘Simply The Best’ or any of Jon Bon Jovi’s stadium anthems, the sooner the pilots dropping him at tournaments will stop aiming jibes at him upon arrival.