Andy Murray's mom supports tennis in Saudi Arabia despite human rights concerns

Former world number one Andy Murray’s mother Judy Murray has supported tennis being played in Saudi Arabia after her experience in the ongoing WTA Finals. The last major event in the women’s tennis calendar is being currently playing in Riyadh for the first time ever.

The competition has been under a lot of scrutiny as many people in the West have questioned the motive behind Saudi Arabia’s heavy investment in different sports. Many believe that the Kingdom, which is the richest in the Middle East, is doing it as a tool to mask human rights violations in the country.

From the tennis world, there have been similar voices raised in the recent past as well. Former world number one Murray, who has recently retired from professional tennis after the Paris Olympics, earlier revealed that he rejected a chance to play in the competition because of the country’s poor record regarding human rights. However, Andy’s mother, Judy, has come out supporting tennis being played in Saudi Arabia. The 65-year-old has recently spoken to BBC 5 Live, as quoted by The Tennis Gazette, where she talked about women's interest in playing tennis in the country. She also explained that hospitality in Saudi Arabia is second to note.

“Yeah, I’ve been able to share with him what my experience here is,” she said. “And I would say to anyone who might have any concern about us coming here, I would say come over and see for yourself, you will be blown away by the hospitality, and the welcome, and the passion for making change. Yet again for me, the enthusiasm, the appreciation of the fact that you have come to their country to help them, it absolutely blew me away. And this morning, I had on my Instagram a message from a local Saudi woman who said, ‘I’m coming to your class this afternoon, I met you two years ago at Princess Nourah University and I can’t wait to see you again, thank you for coming to our country’. That’s the sort of welcome that we’re getting. So there is a massive desire to grow tennis here, there’s a massive passion for the sport, and it really is opening things up to the local people.”