Murray Parts Company With Gilbert

Andy Murray has confirmed that he is to split with Brad Gilbert, the coach who has led him to the brink of the world's top 10. Murray, who is currently ranked No11 in the world, was ranked 36th when Gilbert took over as his coach in July 2006 on a £750,000-a-year contract paid by the Lawn Tennis Association.

In recent months, however, rumors have swirled around the circuit that Murray and Gilbert have had tensions between them, with the British No1 regularly screaming "you're not giving me anything" on several occasions.

But today Murray insisted that he was ditching Gilbert because he wants to hire a team of experts to development his tennis and fitness.

"Despite being injured for almost four months this year, I am pleased with my 2007 results and am very grateful for the help that the LTA have given me by providing Brad Gilbert as a coach," he wrote on his website. "But the time has come to move on to the next stage of my career.

"I am ranked 11 in the world and can now afford to pay my own way and so will now hire a team of experts, each to fulfill a specified role in the development of my tennis and fitness."