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Sir Andy Murray says he feels “very proud” after the All England Club confirmed it will recognise his contribution to tennis with a statue of him at Wimbledon.

Murray ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a men’s singles champion at Wimbledon with a memorable victory over Novak Djokovic in 2013, and triumphed again at SW19 in 2016 when he beat Milos Raonic.

Former Wimbledon chief executive Richard Lewis told BBC Sport in 2019 the club would honour Murray with a statue when he finished playing.

The Scot retired from professional tennis in August 2024 following an appearance at the Olympic Games in Paris.

Debbie Jevans, chair of the All England Club, told the Ainslie + Ainslie Performance People podcast it is now in discussions with 38-year-old Murray to make good on the promise and hoped to have the statue in place by 2027.

“We are looking to have a statue of Andy Murray here]at Wimbledon] and we’re working closely with him and his team”, Jevans said.

“The ambition is that we would unveil that at the 150th anniversary of our first championship, which was 1877. He’s got to rightly be very involved in that and he and his team will be”.

A bronze statue of Fred Perry, the last British men’s champion before Murray, was erected at Wimbledon in 1984 to mark the 50th anniversary of his first singles championship.

Murray told BBC Sport: “I would expect that with Wimbledon and their attention to detail that it will be great.

” I’m very proud, there’s not many statues around the grounds there, and I always remember seeing the Fred Perry statue when I’ve walked around the grounds and gone to train and practise there over the years. It will be very special. “

Jevans said Murray would be equally deserving of being immortalised having provided” special “moments in the club’s history.

” Now he’s retired, we’re very much looking at how we can embrace him, for him to be a part of the club in the long term, “she added.

An emotional Emma Raducanu produced an impressive fightback to reach the second round at Eastbourne and keep her Wimbledon preparations on track.

British number one Raducanu trailed American Ann Li by a set and a break in difficult conditions on the south coast.

But the 22-year-old wrestled control of a topsy-turvy second set before finishing strongly to clinch a 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-1 victory.

Raducanu, who held back tears after securing victory, will meet Australian teenager Maya Joint for a place in the quarter-finals.

“I want to thank the crowd for getting me through some really sticky moments,” Raducanu said in her on-court interview.

“It really meant a lot to me and I’m really proud of how I fought back after losing the first set.

World number 38 Raducanu is building towards her fourth Wimbledon appearance, where she has twice reached the fourth round since her debut in 2021.

A run to the quarter-finals at Queen’s was enough to see the 2021 US Open champion regain the British number one title for the first time in two years earlier this month.

But Raducanu missed last week’s Berlin Open as she continues to manage a back issue – and, a fortnight on from Queen’s, she was given a stern test by 64th-ranked Li amid strong winds on the south coast.

Li, 24, appeared to have maintained her momentum when she secured an immediate break of serve at the start of set two, only to gift her opponent the initiative in the next game.

An unpredictable set continued as, having saved four break points, Raducanu took her opportunity to move 4-2 ahead – and then restored her advantage at 5-3 following another exchange of breaks.

That proved the catalyst for Raducanu’s excellent finish to the match, winning 10 of the last 12 games to blow her opponent away and complete victory in two hours and 18 minutes.

For a while at least, Luke Williams has swapped the managerial merry-go-round for the airport carousel.

He expects to return to more familiar terrain soon, however, with high-vis jacket removed and football boots back on his feet.

And when that time comes, Williams believes he will be a better coach thanks to a spell working at Bristol Airport, where he has been a customer care assistant since last month.

“I am out of my comfort zone,” the former Swansea City and Notts County boss tells BBC Sport Wales.

“I am trying to push myself to do something completely different.

Williams was the talk of social media last weekend having been photographed while on airport duty.

The 44-year-old has been a football coach for two decades, but has been out of work since leaving Swansea in February.

Given that he signed a three-and-a-half-year deal when he took charge at Swansea in January 2024, it is reasonable to assume that he is still being paid by the Championship club.

Having seen hopes of a playing career ruined by injury – and having coached largely in the lower divisions – Williams is not someone who has made millions from football.

Nevertheless, he is not at Bristol Airport for the salary.

“I wanted to go and work and do something meaningful with my time,” Williams explains.

“I am in a very fortunate position where I have some time. I spoke to a guy working in recruitment and he said look, the airport this year is going to be crazy busy, a lot of energy, and that it’s a completely different industry that is going to have many issues that are going to be relatable to the rigours of managing a football club.

“And so I said OK, let me see if I can do this and it’s been brilliant.”

Williams, who lives in Newport, catches a bus from the city centre shortly before five o’clock in the morning to get to work.

He does shifts of between nine and 12 hours for five straight days, then has three days off.

A National League play-off final winner at Notts County and a former boss at Swindon Town, Williams is known for his ability to lead.

At the airport, however, he is guided by “my new pal” Sergio, an Italian who has been in the job for a number of years.

“He is incredible,” Williams says. “He has taken me under his wing and shown me the ropes.

“Sergio is a Napoli fan. He is very happy because they won the Scudetto [in May] and they have just signed Kevin De Bruyne.

“We are going around the airport together, trying to help the passengers and trying to have some fun while we are doing it.”

Initially, Sergio had no idea about his new colleague’s footballing background, but started asking questions when a passenger asked Williams asked for a selfie.

The ever humble Williams – whose old mate Bobby Zamora says “couldn’t care less about fame and fortune” – says he has been recognised “a few times” in the last few weeks.

“Many people have stopped me and said hello and that’s lovely,” he adds.

Williams’ job is to help passengers in need of assistance, whether due to mobility issues or, he explains, because the airport environment “can be really loud and very busy and very confusing”.

“It can be a really stressful place so we try to help them have a good experience,” Williams says.

“If you have a mobility issue, you may need a lift to get you up to the plane or assistance getting out on to the tarmac. You have to try to get people through to make sure they don’t miss their flight.

“There are some great examples of management – prioritising the right passenger at the right time, making sure they have the right equipment. I have been so fortunate because Sergio is the master.”

It came as something of a surprise to Williams that the photograph taken of him at work and then published on social media site X prompted so much interest.

There were numerous likes and shares followed by various headlines as an unusual story was picked up.

“I genuinely didn’t think it would be that interesting to people but, if it is, that’s fine and we can have a chat about it,” Williams says.

“For me, this [interview] is a good opportunity to explain that I like working and I think this is a good way to add something to my actual trade, if you like.

Had things been a little different, Williams might still be at Swansea and preparing for pre-season.

Having steered the club clear of relegation danger in the second half of 2023-24, Williams had Swansea within sight of the Championship play-offs – and playing good football – at the turn of this year.

But after a slump in form that nobody saw coming – and which coincided with a dispiriting January window – Williams lost his job amid concerns that Swansea may be dragged into a fight to stay up.

“There was lots of movement and changes and different things going on, a lot of turmoil during my time which was understandable,” Williams says.

“But I look back very fondly. I loved my time at Swansea and learned so many things which I will take with me for my next job.”

So when might Williams return to the touchline?

He is “ready to go at any time”, whether it be as a head coach or assistant, but is adamant the club must be right.

“The things I have learned and the things that are valuable to me mean working somewhere that’s in a good place and where people are pulling in the same direction,” Williams says.