Andy Murray: Fatherhood helped new world number one, says coach Jamie Delgado
Fatherhood has helped Andy Murray reach the top of his sport, his assistant coach Jamie Delgado said after the Briton was named world number one.
Murray has won Olympic and Wimbledon titles in 2016, reaching 11 finals in 12 events on his way to replacing Novak Djokovic at the top of the rankings.
The 29-year-old Scot also became a father for the first time in February.
Asked if Murray has matured since the birth of daughter Sophia, Delgado told BBC Radio 5 live: “Yeah. I think so.”
He added: “So much has happened off the court which has really helped his calmness when he’s on tour.
“It can be quite stressful, all the tournaments he plays and all the pressure he is under.”
Djokovic had spent 122 consecutive weeks as number one from July 2014, before losing to Marin Cilic in the Paris Masters quarter-final.
Murray then beat John Isner in Sunday’s final in Paris, and will head into the season-ending World Tour Finals in London next weekend 405 points ahead of the Serb.
Delgado, a former Davis Cup player for Great Britain, said becoming Britain’s first number one since computerised rankings began in 1973 was Murray’s “biggest achievement”.
“The toughest thing to do in our sport is to be regarded as the best player over 12 months,” Delgado, 39, explained.
“It’s not just this year. He has worked incredibly hard his whole career and it all culminated in officially becoming the best player in the world.”
Meanwhile, GB Davis Cup captain Leon Smith believes Murray is well placed to hold on to top spot moving into 2017.
“Andy’s so professional and diligent with the process he goes into that he won’t start thinking too far ahead and worry too much about holding onto it,” he told BBC Breakfast.
“The way the points system works, he’s got a good opportunity if you look at the first quarter of 2017.
“With two big Masters Series events in Indian Wells and Miami, where he didn’t perform at his best, he doesn’t have many points to defend. So that’s an opportunity for him.”
Watch Andy Murray compete in the ATP World Tour Finals on BBC Two and the BBC Sport website from 13-20 November.