The Scottish tennis star is playing in his final Olympic Games

Andy Murray in a blue vest and cap

Andy Murray is set to hang up his racquet, having already competed in his final Wimbledon and now taking part in his final Olympic Games.

To mark the special moment, the Scottish star decided to pen a touching tribute to one of his key rivals during his time in tennis: Novak Djokovic. Sharing several photos of the duo throughout their years in tennis, Andy added a cheeky twist to his message. “Rivals, doubles partners, friends and lovers? (see slide 3),” he teased.

 “Thanks for the 25 years of competition @djokernole and good luck for rest of your career,” he concluded.

The third slide of Andy’s tribute featured the two tennis players following a match with their faces close enough that it looked like they were about to kiss.

Andy shared his memories of times with Novak

Other photos showed the duo smiling while off court, embracing following a match (with Andy sporting incredible hair), and a doubles podium with Novak on the top step and Andy on the third post.

Novak’s wife loved the tribute from Andy, sharing: “Love this,” and following it up with a trio of heart emojis.

Andy Murray carrying the Union Jack and wearing a gold medal© NBC
Andy tasted gold at the 2012 Olympic Games

The sportsman pulled out of his singles appearance, but will play in the doubles tournament alongside Dan Evans for his final Olympics appearance.

Speaking on Thursday, Andy said: “The Olympics has been incredibly special for me and there have been some amazing memories on the court – particularly in London.

Andy Murray of Team Great Britain looks on from a boat on the Seine during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 on July 26, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)© Naomi Baker
Andy was part of the Team GB procession at the opening ceremony

“I’m happy I get to do this one more time. It’s unfortunate [not playing in singles] – I trained to get ready to play both, but I’m getting a bit older now so it gets harder to recover from injuries. I ran out of time.”

The 37-year-old has competed in every Olympic Games since 2008, and is a double gold athlete, winning the singles tournament at the 2012 and 2016 Games. At the 2012 Games, he also won a silver medal for the mixed doubles tournament, after losing out to Victoria Azarenka and Max Mirnyi from Belarus.

Andy Murray wiping a tear away from his face
© Clive Brunskill
Andy is due to retire from tennis

Speaking exclusively to HELLO!, the tennis ace relived his best 2012 memories, sharing: “The whole thing was just amazing. To be able to compete at a home Games is a fantastic opportunity for an athlete – so many athletes never get that chance. For me, probably my favourite memory from 2012 was watching Super Saturday.

“I’d met all of those British athletes in the village when I was there and then I watched them all win medals. We were all really invested in everybody else’s success and so we were on such a high that day.”