The BBC Sport boss has recruited 'tennis glamour girl' Genie Bouchard for the broadcaster's Wimbledon coverage this year after dropping Andrew Castle.

The Canadian former Wimbledon finalist and model who lost to Petra Kvitova in 2014 earned positive reviews for her work with TNT Sports at the recent French Open.

Two-time doubles champion Jamie Murray will also join the BBC's coverage after announcing his retirement in April following seven grand slam title wins.

The Scot, 40, will lead tactical and technical analysis while Bouchard and former British number one Laura Robson, both 32, will bring a younger element to the team.

It comes after Castle revealed he was being dropped by the BBC after this year's tournament in south-west London, ending 23 years as their lead commentator.

Castle, 62, a former top 100 player and host of the GMTV breakfast show, has been one of the voices of the tournament – but BBC director of sport Alex Kay-Jelski decided to take the coverage in a new direction, so this year will be his last.

Former champion Andre Agassi will return for the final stages of the tournament while familiar faces John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Pat Cash, Tim Henman and Annabel Croft will be the mainstays of the coverage, which starts on June 29.

Kay-Jelski said: 'Wimbledon remains one of the defining moments of the sporting year, where world-class performance meets a truly British sense of occasion.

'This summer, BBC Sport's coverage combines the heritage and prestige audiences expect with exciting new voices in our presenting line-up, alongside more advanced analytics and tech that bring fresh insight to every game, set and match.

'Our aim is simple: to bring audiences closer to each story and moment that defines Wimbledon whether they are watching clips on their phone, TV, listening to the radio or following live text.'

The BBC said former world number five Bouchard, who retired last July, would give 'a contemporary player's perspective on the realities of competing at the highest level'.

The corporation added that she had 'experience of the pressures, expectations and scrutiny that come with tennis's biggest stages' and would 'bring audiences closer to the mindset of today's stars and the stories unfolding beyond the baseline'.

Clare Balding and Isa Guha will lead the daily TV coverage across BBC One, Two and iPlayer, where they will also be joined by Billie Jean King, Tracy Austin, Kyle Edmund and Annabel Croft.

Every match from all 18 courts in SW19 will be available live on BBC iPlayer while there will be a dedicated Wimbledon Extra stream and a daily podcast.

The BBC confirmed to the Daily Mail that it wanted Castle to continue working for them in a different role at Wimbledon next year, but he made the choice to leave.

Kay-Jelski has overseen a modernisation of BBC Sport in recent years as he tries to bring in new and younger audiences while cutting costs – including axing Football Focus after 52 years and basing this year's World Cup coverage studio in Salford.

Kay-Jelski insisted not hosting from the US until at least the quarter-finals will see the BBC cut its carbon emissions by a fifth compared with the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

He also oversaw Gary Lineker exiting Match of the Day and the new diverse line-up with Mark Chapman, Gabby Logan and Kelly Cates sharing duties on a rotating basis.

Meanwhile Kay-Jelski has chosen to end the BBC's televised coverage of the annual Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race for the first time in nearly a century; and worked on a deal to continue broadcasting the Women's Super League until at least 2030.

Sports media expert Rob Stewart described Castle as the 'fall guy' as the BBC tries to modernise output after the All England Club demanded a revamp to its coverage.

Mr Stewart, who runs Bristol-based firm About On The Up PR, told the Mail: 'They say time waits for no man or woman and that certainly applies to tennis as well, judging by the Beeb's decision to ditch Sue Barker and now Andrew Castle as they want to take coverage in a new direction.

'He's now playing the role of fall guy as the Beeb try to modernise and revamp the coverage to attract and retain audiences following a warning that emerged at the start of this year that Wimbledon chiefs had told the BBC to revamp stale, outdated coverage.

'The All England Club was reported to have demanded a significant improvement to its output with the broadcaster set to hold on to the highly coveted rights and that put Castle right in the firing line after 23 years behind the mic.

'He's taken it with commendable grace and probably saw it coming with BBC sports chief Alex Kay-Jelski needing to take action against the backdrop of All England Club disquiet as tennis coverage elsewhere goes from strength to strength.'

Fellow sports PR expert Lee McLaughlan, who runs the Sweetspot Communications agency, said he believed Castle was 'another casualty' of the sports chief's drive for change.

He told the Mail: 'Is this really a surprise given Alex Kay-Jelski's track record since taking on the job as the BBC's director of sport?

'This year alone he has taken the decision to axe the institution that is Football Focus, has said the BBC doesn't need live sport to remain relevant. The decision to host the BBC's World Cup coverage from Salford and not the USA has also brought derision.

'It seems Andrew Castle is just another casualty in this purge to 'modernise' the BBC's sports coverage.

'Wimbledon is arguably the last remaining crown jewel that BBC Sport has. When you turn on the TV to watch Wimbledon you know what you're going to get and Castle's warm tones and insight is part of that.

'To switch and 'take the coverage in a new direction' is a bold but risky decision.'

Kay-Jelski, 42, joined the BBC in 2024 as director of sport and earns £230,000 a year. He began his career in 2007 as a trainee sub-editor at the Daily Mail, working his way up to sports editor before moving to the same role at The Times in 2015.

Revealing the news of his departure on Tuesday, Castle told the Times: 'It's been a hell of a journey. I can't say I have enjoyed every minute because there have been moments of pressure and controversy, but it has been a huge privilege.

'To be honest, when I got the job 23 years ago, a lot of the more experienced commentators felt that they should have been first in line.

'Their noses were put out of joint. So, in the wider scheme of things, I am lucky that I had the best gig in sports broadcasting for so long, during the greatest age of men's tennis.'

Castle reached a career-high ranking of 80th in the world, competing against players such as Boris Becker and Mats Wilander. He twice made the second round of Wimbledon.

But he became far better known for his post-career work behind the camera, at Wimbledon and as the host for a decade of GMTV, ITV's breakfast show.

Castle also worked for LBC radio and hosted the breakfast show on Smooth Radio for two years.

Asked what he will do after his BBC exit, Castle said: 'My wife Sophia and I are building a house and we're about to have a third grandchild, so things are good. I am not sure what will come next professionally, but whatever it is, I'll embrace it.'

Castle has suffered some gaffes over the years, including referring to Trinity Rodman, the US women's footballer and girlfriend of American tennis star Ben Shelton, as 'Tiffany' during Wimbledon.

In June 2022, Castle came under fire from viewers for saying he was looking forward to welcoming Becker back while the German was in jail.

Becker was sentenced to two years and six months at Southwark Crown Court that April for hiding £2.5million worth of assets and loans to avoid paying off debts.

'I've had a real moment of missing Boris,' Castle said to a BBC audience watching the Queen's Club Championships. 'I know he's in prison and I know why. Boris, we look forward to welcoming you on your return.'

He also had to apologise when he made a silly remark about British player Marcus Willis' girlfriend in July 2016.

Jenny Bates is a dental surgeon, to which the commentator quipped: 'It's a pity my dentist doesn't look like that.' He was criticised on that occasion for casual sexism.

At Queen's two years ago, Castle hit out at then-champion Carlos Alcaraz when it was alleged he was unhappy at the way his name was being pronounced. Castle referred to him as 'Al-ca-raz' rather than the correct Spanish way, 'Al-ca-rath'.

'Is he (Alcaraz) talking about how he wants his name said?' Castle said. 'His name is 'Al-ca-rath' but if you go on the pronunciation on the ATP's website it's 'Al-ca-raz'. All day long we could worry about these. We will call him (Alcaraz) the Spaniard.'

A BBC spokesperson said: 'We wanted Andrew to continue with the BBC at Wimbledon next year, but he has now decided that this year will be his last.

'We look forward to working with him at the 2026 Championships and thank him for his great work leading our commentary team there for more than 20 years.'