A devastated Andy Murray was left questioning his motivation to keep going after Stefanos Tsitsipas fought back to win their delayed second-round clash on Centre Court.
The Scot was two sets to one up overnight after the 11pm curfew came into play but he was unable to complete the job, with fifth seed Tsitsipas battling to a 7-6 (3) 6-7 (2) 4-6 7-6 (3) 6-4 victory.
It was a hugely disappointing way for Murray to mark the 10th anniversary of his career-defining first Wimbledon title, and he is all too aware that his chances for another deep run here are ebbing away.
The 36-year-old is not yet ready to hang up his racket but it was clear how much this one hurt, and he said: “Motivation is obviously a big thing. Continuing having early losses in tournaments like this don’t necessarily help with that.
“It’s similar to, I guess, 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. Hopefully (I’ll) find the motivation again to keep training, keep pushing, try and keep getting better.”
Murray missed the French Open to focus on his grass-court preparations and arrived at the All England Club feeling confident and healthy for the first time since winning his second title in 2016.
He was unfortunate to run into a top seed so early, and there were many aspects of his performance that were positive, but he clearly fancied his chances against Tsitsipas on grass.
For all his incredible efforts at the Australian Open this year and other close calls, he has not gone beyond the third round at a grand slam since his hip problems began back in 2017.
There was very little to choose between the pair throughout this contest, with both players dropping serve just once.
But Tsitsipas’ break in the third game of the deciding set proved the crucial one after the Greek had withstood pressure from Murray to force another tie-break in the fourth.
The crowd willed Murray to find a way back into the match and he saved two match points in the final game, but Tsitsipas clinched his third with an ace to set up a very winnable third round against Laslo Djere.
“You never know how many opportunities you’re going to get to play here,” said Murray. “The defeats maybe feel a bit tougher. But every year that Wimbledon’s not gone how I would like, it’s been hard.
“Obviously it’s brilliant to play in great atmospheres. It makes playing the matches more enjoyable and creates certainly better memories.
“But ultimately this was an opportunity for me. I had a good chance of having a proper run for the first time in a long time at a slam. I didn’t take it. Regardless of the atmosphere and those things, it’s still very, very disappointing to be sitting here right now.”
Murray looked on the verge of tears when he was informed during his press conference that a return he hit at 15-30 that was called out in fact clipped the line.
“That’s obviously frustrating because I remember,” he said. “I think it was a backhand cross-court return, very short. I probably would have won the point.”
Murray could have challenged the call but he criticised umpire Aurelie Tourte for not spotting the mistake.
“It was right underneath the umpire’s nose,” he said. “They shouldn’t be missing that. I assumed the umpire would have made the right call.”
Tennis is increasingly moving towards automated line calls, and Murray added: “Right now I obviously would rather it was done automatically. It’s a hard one because I probably prefer having the line judges on the court. It feels nicer to me.”
Murray had no complaints about the match being halted 20 minutes before the curfew on Thursday at the end of the third set or the fact it resumed with the roof open, changing the conditions.
“My opinion is that this is an outdoor tournament,” he said. “They should be trying their hardest to play as much tennis outdoors as possible.”
Murray, meanwhile, had sparked alarm right before the close of play on Thursday by screaming in pain and going down clutching his left hip, but there was no sign of any discomfort in the final two sets.
“I wouldn’t describe it as an injury,” he said. “I obviously slipped, had some initial pain and discomfort. It’s like sort of a jarring of the joint. It can be a little bit sore. I pulled up OK today.”
Swiatek topples Sabalenka in thrilling Madrid Open final
Iga Swiatek clinched the Madrid Open title after downing defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in a gruelling final.
In a rematch of last year's final, the top two players in the world did battle in thrilling fashion on Saturday, with Swiatek eventually prevailing 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) after three hours and 14 minutes on court.
It marked Swiatek's first title in Madrid, and the Pole had to do it the hard way, saving three championship points before finally coming out on top in the tie-break, which she sealed with her second championship point when Sabalenka sent a backhand long.
This victory means Swiatek, who has won the French Open on three occasions, has now won every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher.
It was also Swiatek's seventh victory over Sabalenka, from what was their 10th meeting.
Data Debrief: Clay queen Swiatek rolls on
Swiatek has now won her past seven WTA Tour-level finals, since the defeat to Sabalenka in Madrid last season, while only Elena Rybakina can match her haul of three titles so far in 2024.
This was the longest singles final of the year so far on the WTA Tour, while it was the fourth show-piece match in a WTA 1000 event to be decided by a third set tie-break.
Since the format’s introduction in 2009, only Serena Williams (13) and Victoria Azarenka (10) have more WTA 1000 titles than Swiatek, whose tally of nine equals the efforts of Simona Halep and Petra Kvitova.
Meanwhile, of players to have made at least 10 appearances at clay court tournaments, only Chris Evert, Margaret Court and Steffi Graf have a higher ratio of victories in the Open Era than Swiatek (8/18).
In fact, Swiatek has now claimed a tournament victory in 31 per cent (9/29) of the WTA 1000 main draws she has entered, the highest percentage of any player since the format’s introduction in 2009.
Sinner joins Alcaraz in withdrawing from Italian Open
Jannik Sinner has joined Carlos Alcaraz in withdrawing from the Italian Open due to injury.
Sinner, who pulled out of his quarter-final tie with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Madrid Open this week, is suffering with a hip issue.
It means the world number two will not participate in what would have been a home tournament in Rome, in what is sure to be a disappointment to the Italian fans.
"It is not easy to write this message but after speaking again with the doctors and specialists about my hip problems I have to announce that unfortunately I will not be able to play in Rome," he wrote on X.
"Obviously I'm very sad that I didn't recover, it being one of my favourite tournaments ever. I couldn't wait to come back and play at home in front of the Italian crowd."
Sinner added he was focusing on recovering in time to play at the French Open, which starts towards the end of May.
On Friday, world number one Alcaraz withdrew from the Italian Open due to an arm problem.
Alcaraz withdraws from Italian Open, Rublev to meet Auger Aliassime in Madrid
Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from next week's Italian Open due to the arm injury that troubled him at the Madrid Open, where Andrey Rublev and Felix Auger Aliassime will face off in Sunday's final.
Alcaraz saw his bid for a third successive Madrid Open crown halted by Rublev in the quarter-finals on Wednesday, the Spaniard being pegged back after taking the opening set in a 4-6 6-3 6-2 loss.
The two-time grand slam champion – who had won his previous 24 matches at Spanish clay-court events – looked tired throughout that match and has now withdrawn from next week's ATP 1000 Masters event in Rome.
In a post to X, Alcaraz wrote: "I felt pain after playing in Madrid, discomfort in my arm.
"Today I had some tests and I have muscle edema in the pronator teres, a consequence of my last injury. Unfortunately I won't be able to play in Rome. I need rest to recover and be able to play 100 per cent pain-free."
Alcaraz only has limited time to recover if he is to feature at the year's second major, with the French Open due to begin on May 20.
Alcaraz's conqueror Rublev advanced to the final of the Madrid event on Friday, producing a commanding performance to beat American Taylor Fritz 6-4 6-3 in the last four.
Rublev entered the Madrid Open on a run of four straight losses, but he is now into his third ATP Masters 1000 final since the start of 2023 – a tally only bettered by Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev (four apiece).
His opponent in Sunday's showpiece match will be Auger Aliassime, who progressed by virtue of a walkover on Friday after semi-final opponent Jiri Lehecka was forced to retire through injury.
Lehecka left the court for treatment on a back injury after just six games, with Auger Aliassime having held serve for 3-3. He only managed to play three further points on his return before calling the match to a halt in a disappointing ending to the night session.
Data Debrief: Lucky Auger Aliassime
Auger Aliassime would surely have preferred to win his semi-final the traditional way, but the Canadian should be fresh for Sunday's final after spending very limited time on court.
He has progressed through three rounds at this year's Madrid Open courtesy of a retirement or walkover, with Jakub Mensik and Jannik Sinner also stricken.
He is the first player since 1990 to progress through three rounds via retirement or walkover at a single ATP Masters event.
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