THE Murray window is closing but Tennis Scotland appear to be diving through it just in time. Failing to adequately capitalise on the ongoing successes of Andy and Jamie has been a long-time frustration of the family, with mum Judy vehement in her criticism of the governing bodies for their inertia.

The success of Andy, in particular, has drawn Scottish eyes to tennis like never before and finally there appear to be plans in place to create an appropriate legacy that will hopefully smooth the pathway for the next set of aspirants desperate to succeed him.

With Stirling home to a new national tennis academy and plans in place to create 10 new indoor facilities – ground should be broken on five of them this year – came the announcement that Tennis Scotland had effectively held the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) upside down by the ankles and managed to shake £1.5m a year out of their pockets, doubling their funding.

Given the amount of money the LTA makes out of hosting Wimbledon alone, it is still not a huge amount but does at least allow Tennis Scotland to move on in their quest to provide an appropriate Murray legacy.

“We all share the same ambition to really make a difference on the back of what has been achieved by Scottish tennis players on the world stage,” said chief executive Blane Dodds.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In days when all you hear is about cutbacks and efficiencies this is a big increase in funding.

“Is it overdue? Absolutely. When I first came into the organisation I couldn’t believe how low levels of income were.

“If we really want to capitalise on this era of world-class Scottish tennis players we have to be serious about it and invest properly. We’re fortunate enough to have one of the biggest tennis events in the world – Wimbledon – that produces a huge amount of money.

“So it was about working through this with the LTA and getting the right answers. They’ve seen our ambition and plans. We’re now aligned with them in their strategic vision which has made it easier for them to invest. It’s been a long time coming but it’s a big step forward.”

Given the sodden start to the year, the promise of new indoor courts is a timely move. And this extra funding ought to help provide the coaches to work inside them.

“The legacy I’m looking at has to be across the board,” added Dodds. “It can’t just be about creating world-class players. It has to be also about getting more people playing the game.

“We’ve doubled our membership while the Murrays have been playing but we have to present all-year round play.

“That’s limited at the moment because of the weather and the lack of indoor facilities. But the multi-million capital investment fund we have in place will deliver that right across Scotland.

“We need to be looking at performance tennis as well. If we’re going to be serious about more people playing the game then we need to have a world-class coaching pathway to make sure our younger players are the best they can be.

“The third part is the resources that we’ve announced that will take us to the next level. It will mean a huge increase in programmes and infrastructure, more staff and coaches, coaching development, and working more with schools and clubs.”

There was only one Scot, Matthew Rankin, in the first intake at the national academy but the hope is more will follow. And it ought to save future prospects from having to advance their careers overseas as both Murray brothers had to do.

“It’s a truly world-class academy based in Scotland,” added Dodds. “For those children who are ambitious and have a passion for tennis, we have an option for them now rather than having to move abroad or down south.

“Two years ago if a world-class talent came and asked for help then at that time we would have had to say we had nothing for them.

“Now we’ve got a world-class programme on our doorstep that we can be proud of and know will be successful. And we have the resources to deliver it properly.”