Murray bested by Etcheverry in straight sets
Andy Murray’s last go around at the Australian Open couldn’t have been more thrilling. The Scottish legend put in a gruelling performance in the second round against Thanasi Kokkinakis in a match that lasted nearly six hours. He then took his third round opponent Roberto Bautista to four sets.
In total, he was on the court for nearly 11 hours at the 2023 Australian Open. At the 2024 Australian Open, Murray lasted just two hours and 23 minutes.
The 36-year-old tennis great was no match for his opponent, Tomas Etcheverry. The 24-year-old Argentine battled with Murray in the first set before completely dominating the legend in the second and third sets. Murray had his serve broken by Etcheverry six times. He didn’t even threaten Etcheverry's serve after the second game of the match. When it was all said and done, Murray suffered a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 loss.
Murray’s first round exit at the 2024 Australian Open was just his second first round exit in 13 Australian Open appearances. It was the earliest Grand Slam exit suffered by Murray since the 2021 US Open. The loss was the five-time Australian Open winner’s eighth in twelve matches. Murray has never had such a poor run of matches in his career.
Like always, Murray was applauded as he left the court. Despite the applause, Murray showed little emotion as he waved to his fans and walked off following his defeat.
Murray questioning his future
Murray’s opponent, Tomas Etcheverry, will play Frenchman Gaël Monfils later this week in the second round of the Australian Open. Murray, meanwhile, may never play in the Australian Open again.
The 36-year-old tennis legend took a sombre tone at his press conference on Monday following his defeat. It was clear to anyone watching that Murray was shaken by his latest defeat on such a big stage.
When asked about what happened, Murray pulled no punches and wore his emotions on his sleeve. “Whilst you're playing the match, you're obviously trying to control your emotions, focus on the points and everything,” Murray said.
“When you're one point away from the end, you're like, 'I can't believe this is over so quickly, and like this.’ I was disappointed with the way I played and all of that stuff. It was a tough, tough way to finish.”
“It's a definite possibility that will be the last time I play here,” the former number one revealed, leading many to believe Murray may soon finally announce his retirement from tennis.
Other Australian Open news
Andy Murray was not the only big name to be eliminated from the 2024 Australian Open first round. Japanese tennis superstar Naomi Osaka was defeated 6-4, 7-6 (2) by France’s Caroline Garcia on Monday. This tournament was the 26-year-old’s first Grand Slam since coming back from maternity leave.
The betting sites favourite, Novak Djokovic, started his 2024 Australian Open campaign with a 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 victory against Dino Prizmic. It was Prizmic’s first ever Grand Slam match, but he handled the occasion well. Not only did the 18-year-old Croatian take Djokovic to four sets, the match was the longest of all first round matches.
