With Sir Andy Murray's historic career now entering its final months, we count down the five greatest British tennis players of all time.

The tennis world has begun to pay tribute to Sir Andy Murray, who is expected to hang up his racquet after the Olympics this year.

The Scot has now played his final match at Wimbledon, having had to pull out of the 2024 singles due to fitness concerns before being eliminated from the men's doubles in the first round and seeing his hopes of taking part in the mixed doubles ended by Emma Raducanu's withdrawal.

Murray is hopeful of recovering in time for this summer's tournament at Roland Garros, where he will look to become the first person in history to win three Olympic gold medals in singles competition.

Such an achievement would be a fitting way to bring the curtain down on the 37-year-old's historic career, which at his peak saw him rival arguably the three greatest players in history - Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic - for supremacy in the sport.

To celebrate such a memorable career, here we count down the five best British tennis players of the Open Era.

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1. Andy Murray

In an era where Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic dominated and dazzled, Murray's three grand slam triumphs, two Olympic golds and unforgettable rise to number one in the world in 2016 should not be glossed over. The Scot's major haul would surely have been higher had he not had the misfortune to be contemporary rivals to that all-conquering trio, who repeatedly admonished those who sought to cast him out of tennis' 'Big Four'.

2. Virginia Wade

In a career that started towards the end of the amateur era and stretched well into the Open era, Wade matched Murray's number of grand slam successes and reached a peak of world number two in the mid-1970s. Her crowning moment came at Wimbledon in 1977, the tournament's centenary year, in what remains the last time a British woman prevailed in a major singles competition. Wade also won four grand slam doubles titles alongside Margaret Court.

3. Sue Barker

Gets the nod over the two below her by virtue of her 1976 French Open triumph, which came shortly after her 20th birthday and was thought to be the start of a glittering career. Semi-final appearances at Wimbledon and the Australian Open elevated her ranking to a peak of third in the world in 1977 before injuries gradually took their toll thereafter. However, a record of 15 singles titles and 12 in doubles is still a fine achievement.

4. Greg Rusedski

The big-serving left-hander wrestled with Tim Henman for British superiority before Murray came along and places higher than his rival because of his 1997 US Open final appearance as well as winning four more singles titles (15 to Henman's 11). However, Canadian-born Rusedski's overall record in the major tournaments was undistinguished for a player who climbed as high as fourth in the rankings, reaching only one other quarter-final.

5. Tim Henman

His near misses at Wimbledon, where he reached the semi-finals on four separate occasions without progressing further, earned him a legion of fans while 'Henman Hill' is still referred to as such despite his retirement more than a decade ago. Henman was more than a plucky have-a-go hero, though, and also reached the semi-finals of the French Open and US Open, was ranked fourth at one point and boasted wins over a number of all-time greats. body check tags ::

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