Andy Murray says he has been enjoying time with his newborn daughter, but has also resumed training before his return to the courts this week.
Murray took a five-week break following the Australian Open. His wife, Kim, gave birth to their daughter, Sophia, three weeks ago.
"The thing that has surprised me most is how quickly everything changes—from the first day she was born,” Murray told The Guardian. “You don’t notice it when you’re there every day. But you look back at a photo on the day she was born to one taken five days later to now, a few weeks on, and you see how much things change on a daily basis."
The two-time Grand Slam champion admitted that changing diapers was nerve-racking at first.
“Yeah, after the first couple of days I felt much more confident,” he said.
Murray will play a home tie for Britain against Japan in Davis Cup this week. He indicated he has been training again despite the increased pull of home, but said it would be tough to be away for the first time since the birth.
“Even when I’m away for a day I feel bad," he said. "I feel I should be there and I want to be there as much as I can. So when I’m leaving the house at eight in the morning and getting back at eight at night, I feel bad."
He doesn't know whether becoming a father will affect his tennis, noting that it seems to have been a positive for Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. For "other players it hasn’t," he added.
"It’s tough to tell,” Murray said. “I’ve been training again and certainly haven’t been worse. I’ve been very motivated in practice … [It’s] a positive thing—and tennis not being your priority can help … The outcome of a match is not everything, but I want my daughter to be proud of her dad when she grows up.”