Andy Murray has been called many things throughout the course of his tennis career but this past week is almost certainly the first time he has been called a feminist.

Murray's decision to become the first high-profile male tennis player to appoint a female coach when he hired Amelie Mauresmo in June of last year was met with derision in many quarters and his poor run of form in the second half of last season did little to silence the doubters.

Murray attributed his disappointing results to the back surgery that he underwent at the end of 2013 but many did not listen, directing accusations towards Mauresmo of not being up to the job of coaching one of the male tour's best players. These critics claimed that Mauresmo's unsuitability to coach Murray was not because she had failed to play tennis to a high enough level or that she lacked coaching experience.

Neither of these accusations can be levelled at Mauresmo; she is a double grand slam champion and then, following her retirement, coached her compatriot, Marion Bartoli, to the Wimbledon crown in 2013, as well as currently holding the post of captain of the French Fed Cup team. No, the claim was that Mauresmo's inability to coach Murray was, purely and simply, down to the fact that she was a woman.

I have a couple of issues with this assertion. Firstly, it is wholly unoriginal; I prefer my sexism to be somewhat more nuanced and imaginative than this. Secondly, there is, unsurprisingly, no evidence whatsoever that women are inferior coaches for male players than men.

It was alleged that Mauresmo could not have a full appreciation of the men's game because she has never played it- this criticism has not once been directed at Toni Nadal, Rafa's uncle, who has coached the 14-time grand slam champion since he was a child. Toni Nadal has never been close to playing professional tennis yet his credentials to coach his nephew have never been called into question. Emm....., double standards perhaps?

Murray's run to the final of the Australian Open has done much to stem the dissent directed at Mauresmo although it is likely that these attitudes will rear their head remarkably quickly once again if Murray's form drops. In Melbourne, Murray looked in quite supreme physical shape and in interviews, exuded a calmness which has rarely, if ever, been seen to such an extent in the 27 year-old. The Frenchwoman must be credited for much of this.

Murray's ultimate capitulation against Novak Djokovic on Sunday gave the Mauresmo critics fresh fuel, with many speculating that he would not have acted so stroppily had it been Ivan Lendl, his previous coach, still sitting in the players box. This reaction is knee-jerk and faintly ridiculous.

Yes, Murray lost control of his emotions in the final- to say that this would never have happened had Lendl rather than Mauresmo been in his corner is pure speculation. Mauresmo and Murray have developed a rapport with which the Scot is clearly comfortable and the Scot has an obvious respect for her- his behaviour on Sunday has little to do with Mauresmo's presence.

That Murray has been the player to take the leap and become the first high-profile man to hire a female coach should, in fact, come as little surprise. Firstly, he always has and always will do whatever he damn well wants. Murray rarely gives much credence to what 'outsiders' think of him. Secondly, Murray has always had a strong female presence in both his life and his tennis career.

His mother, Judy, was his first coach and has continued to play an instrumental role throughout his career. The former Wimbledon champion is one of the few male players who takes an active interest in the women's game, often tweeting about WTA players or matches that he has watched.

But it was Murray's post-match interview following his semi-final defeat of Tomas Berdych which really hit the mark. "I think so far this week we've shown that women can be very good coaches", he said. "Madison Keys, who reached the semis here, is also coached by a woman- Lindsay Davenport. I see no reason why it can't keep moving forward like that in the future."

Well said, Andy Murray. That the Scot stuck his head above the parapet and made these statements should be applauded. In those few sentences, Murray did more for women coaches than any governing body initiative has ever done.

For the best tennis player that Britain has ever produced to extol women coaches quite so volubly and overtly will give every female with aspirations to go into coaching the confidence that they are just as good as their male counterparts. The battle to eradicate the attitudes that male coaches are inherently better than female equivalents is not over yet. Not even close. But to those sexists who persist with this belief, be a bit more imaginative in the future, okay?