Andy Murray: ‘I would love to ask Alex Ferguson lots of questions’

He may have won Wimbledon twice, received a knighthood and be the proud owner of an Olympic gold medal – but Sir Andy Murray would still love some career advice from the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson.

Speaking to The Big Issue for this week’s exclusive Connor Brothers takeover edition, the tennis ace said he wished he had made more of the time he has spent with former Manchester United boss Sir Alex, and hopes to get the opportunity to sit down with him in the future.

“I’ve met Alex Ferguson a few times but there have always been lots of people around,” he said. “I wish I’d had the opportunity to spend more time with him, because he’s a very special guy.

“I would love to sit down and ask him lots of questions to help me deal with certain situations and with pressure and how to stay motivated. Yeah, that would be someone I could learn a lot from.”

Elsewhere in his Letter to My Younger Self interview, Murray discusses his childhood, balancing fatherhood with his career and the advice he got from his daughter after being knocked out of Wimbledon this year.

“I got home and my daughter said, “Daddy, you’re home because you lost another tennis match.” And I said, yeah, I did lose. And she said,  ‘When you lose something you should try and try again.’

“So yeah, I lost at Wimbledon, but then I spoke to my kid and she gave me the advice that I give to her when she’s upset. So that was nice.”

Murray said if he were to give a message to his younger self, it would be to prepare better for what sport and life will throw at him.

“Throughout my career I’ve had lots of setbacks and lots of difficult losses,” he explained. “I always try to use that as motivation, as a positive.

“Even when things weren’t going well, like losing the Wimbledon final [in 2012 to Roger Federer] – I was gutted, I was so upset about that. But I kept trying and kept fighting to improve myself. But I could have been better prepared for the difficult moments, rather than just reacting to them when they happen.

“I should have talked more about those things before they happened. I wish I hadn’t been so hard on myself during my career and allowed myself to enjoy the good moments more.”

This interview is from the exclusive Connor Brothers takeover of The Big Issue, out now.Get the special edition, full of custom artwork and sure to be a collector’s item, from your local vendor or from The Big Issue Shop.