Andy Murray has admitted he had doubts about accepting a knighthood at the end of last year, as he feared it would "distract" him from his aim of winning more Grand Slams.
The world number one, who is preparing for next week's Australian Open in Melbourne, told The Times he was concerned that he was too young for the honour and took advice from his inner circle before accepting the award.
"I spoke to a few of the people closest to me. I didn't have too long, but obviously you think about something like that because I do feel like it's obviously a big honour to be offered that, but with that comes maybe a little bit more responsibility. I'm still very young, I'm still competing and obviously don't want anything to distract me or affect my performance on the court," he said.
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In the end the 29-year-old accepted the honour to become "the youngest person in living memory and the first active tennis player to be made a knight", says Stuart Fraser of the Times, who adds that Murray's new status has brought an "element of intrigue" to the locker room.
Some players are no longer sure what to call him, says Fraser, but the Scottish tennis star has decided against using his title in everyday life. "Andy is fine," he says.
His title also raises questions for tournament organisers. "Wimbledon officials have admitted that it is 'unlikely' they will refer to Murray as Sir on scoreboards at the All England Club, but will consider the matter before this year's event given that there is no precedent to follow," adds Fraser.
Elsewhere in the interview Murray revealed that he would be keen to branch out into football once his tennis career is over, but is also keen on coaching in his current sport.
"I would like to give something back as tennis has obviously given a lot to me. I do care about British tennis a lot, I would like to see it doing better," he said, before adding that he would also "like to do something in football... I watch loads of it."
