Andy Murray’s return to singles competition has ended in defeat after he was knocked out of the Western and Southern Open in straight sets.
The former world No.1 fell 6-4, 6-4, to Richard Gasquet in the first round of the Cincinnati tournament on Monday. It was the first time the British player had played a competitive match on his own since undergoing surgery following the Australian Open. Murray began his comeback to the ATP Tour in June, but had focused solely on doubles until this week.
Both players have endured their fair share of injury misfortunes. Former world No.1 Murray underwent hip resurfacing surgery in the end of January. The second operation he has had on his hip within the past two years. Meanwhile, Gasquet missed the first five months of the 2019 season due groin surgery, which he underwent 10 days before Murray had his.
In what was a tentative start to the match, Murray took his time to find a rhythm in his shot-making. An inevitable outcome for somebody who has been away from singles competition for so long. Gasquet was also far from his best with the two trading breaks of serve early on. Nevertheless, it was the Frenchman who came out on top in the opener with the use of various drop shots. A forehand cross-court winner enabled Gasquet to break once again for a 4-3 lead en route to sealing the first set. Closing it out with a love service game.
There was no doubt that Murray’s desire for the sport was still there with verbal bursts of frustration when things weren’t going in his favour. His mood deteriorated further when Gasquet opened up a 2-0 lead at the start of the second set. Hitting more loosely, there were glimpses of Murray’s talent as the match progressed. Placing full pressure onto his opponent’s shoulders. However, it wasn’t enough to derail Gasquet from victory. Who booked a place in the second round on his first match point after a Murray backhand drifted wide.
Murray, who is a two-time champion of the Masters 1000 event, won 80% of his first service points compared to only 48% of his second. His winner-error ratio was 20-28, which wasn’t far off Gasquet’s tally of 22 and 23.
As Murray exits the tournament, Gasquet will take on Dominic Thiem in the next round.
