ANDY Murray’s now infamous ‘Yes’ tweet ahead of the Scottish referendum has once again thrown the spotlight on high-profile figures giving their opinions in public.

In the world of social media, a comment can travel around the world in seconds and be seized upon by hundreds of people in a similar time.

Sometimes you wonder if celebrities engage their brain before shouting off in 140 characters or less.

But in Murray’s case, I can’t help wondering what all the fuss is about.

While the former Wimbledon champion might have been better advised to keep his opinions to himself by his PR team, he is entitled to express them and Twitter is the modern way of doing so.

For him to be criticised and abused, quite abhorrently by some, for holding a particular viewpoint is wrong.

It may have been a sensitive subject but it’s not as if he said anything derogatory. He hasn’t offered anyone out or incited racial hatred.

What’s wrong with Murray representing Great Britain but also having a passion for the country he was born in?

Scotland and England compete as separate nations at the Commonwealth Games, as they did in Glasgow this summer, but athletes join together under the Union Jack at the Olympics and nobody bats an eyelid.

Would anyone care if Scottish rugby players who have turned out for the Lions were staunchly patriotic?

If anything, it would be odd if they were not.

Part of the problem is Murray’s wider public perception beyond tennis fans. He is still paying the price for a quip he made prior to the World Cup in 2006 when he said he would support anyone but England.

It was meant as a throwaway line but was treated as if he had committed a treasonous act. Is it any wonder he has been guarded when expressing his opinions since?

The reaction to his tweet only strengthens that argument but he felt strongly enough to make his stance known nevertheless.

As one commentator put it, perhaps the backlash was part of the reason he wanted to vote yes in the first place.