Mauresmo and Murray Announce Split

Andy Murray has split from coach Amelie Mauresmo after two years.

Murray, 28, said he had "learnt a lot" from Mauresmo but they had "mutually agreed" to end their partnership.

"Dedicating enough time along with the travel has been a challenge," twice Grand Slam champion Mauresmo added.

Since he began working with her in June 2014, Murray has won seven titles - including his first two on clay - but has failed to add to his two majors.

In a joint statement, Murray added: "She's been a calming influence in the team and we will all miss having her around.

"I'll take some time to consider the next steps and how we progress from here, but I'd like to thank her for everything she has done. She's been an invaluable member of the team."

Frenchwoman Mauresmo, 36, added: "Working with Andy over the last two years has been a fantastic experience for me.

"I've thoroughly enjoyed being part of the great team of people he has around him. I wish him and the team well and I hope he goes on to win many more titles."

Murray - who lost his number two ranking to Roger Federer after his defeat by Novak Djokovic in the Mutua Madrid Open final on Sunday - was previously coached by former world number one Ivan Lendl.

Under Lendl he won the 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon.

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Murray Makes Mutua Madrid Quarters

Murray in Madrid

 Defending champion Andy Murray reached the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open with an impressive 6-4 6-2 win over 16th seed Gilles Simon of France.

Second seed Murray, 28, broke Simon for the first time to take the opening set as part of a five-game winning run.

He then broke three times in the second set to complete victory in one hour, 38 minutes.

Murray will play either Czech Tomas Berdych or Spaniard David Ferrer in the last eight.

Murray's serve was never broken and the power and variety of his ground strokes was too much for Simon, 31.

"It's always difficult to get the balance right against him because the better you hit the ball, the faster it comes back against him," Murray said.

"He uses the pace very well so I knew I needed to be patient and use variety, but also when the chance is there, go for it. Sometimes he makes players rush, but today I didn't have that problem. It was good from start to finish."

World number one Novak Djokovic, who won in Madrid in 2011, plays Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut later on Thursday.

Four-time winner Rafael Nadal, who lost to Murray is last year's final, plays Sam Querrey of the United States in the evening session.

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Becker Critical of Murray Drug Comments

Becker at Laureus Awards - Getty Images

Boris Becker, has criticised Andy Murray for airing his suspicions that some of his opponents may have used performance-enhancing drugs.

Murray, ranked No2 in the world behind Djokovic, has been outspoken on drug use in the sport in recent weeks and welcomed the ban imposed on Maria Sharapova following her failed test for meldonium at the Australian Open.

Murray, who was beaten by Rafael Nadal in the Monte Carlo Masters semi-finals on Saturday, has also talked of being suspicious of opponents who he thought were not getting tired in matches.

Becker, a six-times grand slam winner, has accused Murray of being “out of order”. Speaking at the Laureus World Sport Awards, he told the Daily Mail: “We have random drug-testing and unless it’s proven, they are 100% innocent. So to assume something because somebody has won a grand slam or is fitter is totally out of order.

“Andy is one of the fittest players on the tour – he often outlasts players and nobody is questioning his ethics. I believe 100% Andy is clean. Roger [Federer] is clean, Rafa is clean, all these guys are clean. Novak gets tested a lot. That can mean twice in a grand slam.”

Murray had told the Mail On Sunday: “I have played against players and thought: ‘They won’t go away or they don’t seem to be getting tired’. Have I ever been suspicious of someone? Yeah. You hear things.

“It’s harder to tell in our sport as people can make big improvements to a stroke or start serving better because they have made technical changes. If it’s purely physical and you’re watching someone playing six-hour matches over and over and showing no signs of being tired, you’d look at that.”

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Murray Looks Exhausted - Annabel Croft

Andy Murray looks an “exhausted” player, according to the former British No1 Annabel Croft.

Murray was eliminated from the Miami Open on Monday after a three-set defeat against Grigor Dimitrov and many have made the connection between the Scot’s indifferent form and his recently becoming a father.

The 28-year-old returned to action in March after the birth of his daughter but made an early exit from Indian Wells and looked out of sorts in Florida, smashing his racket into his bag with frustration during the 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 defeat. “There were a lot of unforced errors – 55 for him, which is a lot for Andy,” Croft told Sky Sports News HQ. “There was a lot of emotion, a lot of back-chat to the box. He admitted himself that wasn’t great and he needs to find focus. I think generally he looked exhausted.”

Leon Smith has seen Murray at his best over the past 12 months but the Great Britain Davis Cup captain agrees that Murray looks off the pace. “There’s so much going on his life, but also a snowball effect,” he told Sky Sports News.

“If you think back to the end of last year, with the Davis Cup final then only a few days off, then he went straight to Dubai for pre-season. He had a great run in Australia, reaching the final again, then suddenly a life-changing moment as Sophia arrives.

“It’s a brilliant episode and chapter in his life but it’s a lot to take in. Then we have a Davis Cup tie against Japan which was extremely stressful – the match against Kei Nishikori took a lot out of him. To then travel a big distance out to Indian Wells and start this again – there’s not been many breaks. You certainly can’t count having a child as a break! There’s a lot of changes and it will take time to adjust.”

Murray, meanwhile, has rubbished talk of a rift with his coach, Amélie Mauresmo, who. Mauresmo watched Murray lose to Dimitrov from a different part of the stadium to the box where the rest of his family.

“If I’d had a falling out then Amélie wouldn’t be here at the tournament,” he said. “We had dinner with all our families last night, so we certainly haven’t fallen out. It’s one of those things that when I win no one says anything about it, and then when I lose that’s an excuse. I don’t think that is the reason for me hitting 50 unforced errors in this match.”

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Ryder Cup for Tennis Not for Cash

A Ryder Cup-style competition for men's tennis may struggle to win player support, according to former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash.

Teams from Europe and the Rest of the World will compete annually for the Laver Cup, named after 77-year-old Australian tennis legend Rod Laver.

The inaugural edition of the event is scheduled for September 2017.

"I like the concept but I don't know if players will take it seriously," Cash told Radio 5 live sports extra.

The tournament organisers say each six-man team will be captained by a "a legend of the sport", who will pick two wildcards to add to the four players who qualify through "a results-based formula".

The 12-match competition will take place over three days, with each day featuring three singles matches and a doubles match.

The tournament is the brainchild of Team8, the management agency of 17-time grand slam winner Roger Federer, Tennis Australia and Jorge Paulo Lemann, a Brazilian businessman who represented both Brazil and Switzerland as a player in the Davis Cup.

Cash, who won the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 1987, believes the timing of the tournament will discourage the top players from signing up.

"The concept is a great idea, but it's after the US Open and the Davis Cup [semi-finals] - it's stuck in the middle of a tournament," he said.

"With the Davis Cup struggling in some places in the world, I'm not sure we need another tournament to squeeze in."

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