An emotional Andy Murray hinted that he may have played his last Wimbledon match after his hopes of reaching the third round were dashed on Friday.
The two-time champion spoke of his disappointment after he was defeated by Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, the fifth seed, in five sets as the temperature soared to 29C.
Ten years after winning his first Wimbledon championship, Murray, 36, waved as he left Centre Court to roaring applause and a standing ovation.
In his post-match interview, the dejected player told reporters: “I’m obviously very disappointed. Obviously, you never know how many opportunities you’re going to get to play here. The defeats maybe feel a bit tougher.”
Murray was asked if he was confident that he would be back next year, but said: “I don’t know. Motivation is obviously a big thing. Continuing having early losses in tournaments like this don’t necessarily help with that.
“It’s similar to last year. I had a long think about things, spoke to my family, decided to keep on going. I don’t plan to stop right now. But this one will take a little while to get over. I’ll hopefully find the motivation again to keep training, keep pushing, try to keep getting better.”
In his on-court interview, Tsitsipas described the four-hour, 40-minute clash, which he won 7-6 (3), 6-7 (2), 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4, as “nerve-racking”. He paid tribute to the resilience of his opponent, who has a metal hip and is 11 years his senior.
“It’s never easy against Andy. Everyone loves him here,” he said. “It was a very difficult game and I’m very impressed with the way he holds up, having been so many years on the tour and having had two hip surgeries. I’m very impressed with his level.”
Tsitsipas, who reached the final of the Australian Open in January, now faces Laslo Djere of Serbia in the third round.
Murray was cheered on by his wife, Kim Sears, and mother, Judy, while 18-time grand slam singles champion Martina Navratilova watched from the royal box. The crowd were firmly behind him, shouting: “Come on, Andy.”
The Hill at Wimbledon filled up with fans eager to see the conclusion of the pair’s second-round match. It was postponed on Thursday at 10.40pm due to the 11pm curfew, when Murray was leading by two sets to one.
The postponement came minutes after Murray slipped and shrieked loudly as he appeared to hurt his groin. After struggling to his feet, he was able to close out the set.
In his press conference on Friday, Murray said he had asked not to be scheduled last on Centre Court, which often leads to matches being postponed, or disruption as the roof has to be closed. Murray played under a closed roof on Thursday, and in the blazing sunshine on Friday.
He was asked if play should start earlier to prevent such disruption but said Wimbledon was responsible for decision-making. “It’s obviously not just what’s best for the players. There’s obviously other things, like TV, hospitality, those sorts of things, that are factored into those decisions. I’m sure they’re weighing all of those things up to try to make the right decision for the event.”
There were also disappointment for Cameron Norrie, the British No 1 and 12th seed, who was knocked out of the second round by American Christopher Eubanks, and Liam Broady, who was defeated by Denis Shapovalov in the third round.
Elsewhere, there was victory for Carlos Alcaraz, the world No 1, who beat France’s Alexandre Müller in straight sets to reach the third round.