![]() ![]() After Saturday’s loss, he was asked how moments such as those this week make him feel. In the time since, he has wondered aloud whether the work it takes to be competitive now is worth it. Not much later came Murray’s second procedure, this one to fit him with an artificial hip, and he eventually returned to the tour. These two had played six times previously, including Bautista Agut’s win at the Australian Open in 2019, a year after Murray had his first of two hip operations - and days after he tearfully acknowledged he thought he was on the verge of retirement.Īfter that loss to Bautista Agut, a video tribute to Murray was played in the stadium, and he himself uttered the words, “If today was my last match …” “I think maybe next round, a little bit more for me.” “Today (there) was a lot love of for Andy,” the 24th-seeded Bautista Agut said afterward. When the match was over, Murray was given quite a send-off. He got off to a slow start against Bautista Agut on Saturday, made a strong push to grab the second set, and faded down the stretch. to 9 a.m., showed up at the tournament site to get his blisters drained, and returned to his hotel for a nap, before getting on court to hit for just 15 minutes or so. This match ended a minute shy of 3 1/2 hours, which seemed rather short and sweet when compared to Murray’s exhausting trek that took more than 10 1/2 hours earlier in the week: He beat 13th-seeded Matteo Berrettini in a five-setter in the first round on Tuesday, then eliminated Thanasi Kokkinakis in another five-setter in the second round that began on Thursday night and concluded a little after 4 a.m. I’m very proud of that,” said Murray, a five-time finalist at Melbourne Park and the owner of three Grand Slam titles from elsewhere. You can control the effort that you put into it, and I gave everything that I had the last three matches. You can’t control how well you’re going to play or the result. No, the wear-and-tear of Murray’s two previous unending, unyielding, performances simply took too much out of his 35-year-old body and metal hip, leaving him with more than a half-dozen blisters and an aching lower back during a 6-1, 6-7 (7), 6-3, 6-4 loss to Roberto Bautista Agut in the third round Saturday night. MELBOURNE, Australia - Andy Murray evened his Australian Open match at a set apiece and stood in a corner of Margaret Court Arena with his hands on his hips, staring up into the stands, where spectators were jumping and screaming, pumping their arms and waving blue-and-white Scottish flags.Īll of those fans, and Murray himself, could have been excused in that moment for thinking, “Here we go again!”Įxcept there would be no five-set thriller this time for Murray and his many backers. ![]()
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