Wheelchair tennis icon Dylan Alcott in tears after receiving heartfelt text message from Andy Murray
Wheelchair tennis legend Dylan Alcott got emotional when reading a text message from Andy Murray during a press conference after his final at the 2022 Australian Open.
The 31-year-old had previously announced he would call it quits on his illustrious tennis career after this year's Melbourne Slam.
The Aussie was the top seed in the men's wheelchair quad singles and started the tournament against Dutchman Niels Vink. He lost the first set but bounced back to win the next two and reach the semifinals.
Alcott squared off against 2020 runner-up Andy Lapthorne in the last four. He beat the Brit 6-3, 6-0 to set up a showdown against second seed Sam Schroder in a rematch of last year's final.
The Dutchman beat Alcott 7-5, 6-0 to win his second Grand Slam singles title and register his second win over the Australian in five Major finals.
After the match, Alcott burst into tears while reading Murray's text. The Aussie revealed that the three-time Grand Slam champion called him a "rock star and inspiration."
“This just sums up how it’s changed. I hope he doesn’t mind this. But Andy Murray just messaged me: ‘I don’t know if I’ve articulated that well but you’re an absolute rock star and inspiration. Thanks for everything that you’ve done.’ That kills me. Makes me want to cry. It’s special. Like you’re just a part of it…"
“They don’t even care you’re in a wheelchair. They don’t give a s**t. Sorry to swear. It’s special. It’s so nice. It’s like that everywhere. I never thought that would happen, like it’s cool. It’s really cool. There’s a legend of the sport getting around wheelchair tennis, if it’s good enough for someone like that, it’s good enough for everyone. Sorry I didn’t mean to cry,” the Aussie said.
Anyone else become a blubbering mess after watching Dylan Alcott get a text from Andy Murray #AusOpen https://t.co/EJNgTbYXH9
Dylan Alcott has won 23 Grand Slam titles
By announcing his retirement, Dylan Alcott ended an illustrious career during which he won a total of 23 Majors, including 15 singles and eight doubles titles.
The 31-year-old won the Australian Open seven times, Roland Garros and the US Open thrice and Wimbledon twice. He also won two Paralympic golds in Rio and Tokyo.
The Aussie won the doubles title four years in a row in Melbourne while winning the US Open twice. He also triumphed once at Wimbledon and the French Open.
Alcott will go down as arguably the greatest wheelchair tennis player of all time. The 31-year-old and several other wheelchair tennis stars are an inspiration to many, so it comes as no surprise that Murray sent him this heartwarming text message.