Andy Murray produced a stirring comeback in the final set to overcome fellow wildcard Robin Haase at the Rotterdam Open on Monday.  

Murray, who was dumped out in the first round of last week's Open Sud de France, hit 33 winners on his way to a 2-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 triumph – his first tour-level victory since the 2020 US Open.  

The Scot got off to a slow start and found himself 4-1 down in the first set, with home favourite Haase comfortably seeing things out from there in the opener.  

Murray needed a tie-break to take the second set before finding himself 3-0 down in the decider. However, he put together a stunning six-game run to claim a fifth career victory over Haas in six meetings.

Next up will be either number four seed Andrey Rublev or qualifier Marcos Giron in the second round. 

Elsewhere, Kei Nishikori ended a run of four straight defeats with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-1 victory over seventh seed Felix Auger-Aliassime to set up a clash against Alex de Minaur or John Millman.  

"It was a very tight game, he was serving great especially in the first set and he won a lot on first serve," Nishikori said. "I played solidly in the tie-break and served well on the last couple of points. It was easier in the second set, with his injury, but I was more comfortable and striking the ball better." 

Murray's compatriot Cameron Norrie, meanwhile, cruised past Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-0 6-3 and will play Stan Wawrinka or Karen Khachanov in the next round. 

Andy Murray endured a miserable return to ATP Tour action as he alarmingly lost in straight sets to Egor Gerasimov at the Open Sud de France.

A positive coronavirus test ahead of the Australian Open meant Murray had not played on the main tour ahead of travelling to Montpellier this week.

The three-time major champion, who lost in the final of a Challenger Tour event in Biella earlier this month, revealed on Monday he did not watch the action at the first grand slam of the year "because I wanted to be there myself".

But Murray also suggested practice had gone well in the meantime and he was optimistic of again competing with the world's best.

Tuesday's first-round meeting with Gerasimov brought a bump back down to earth.

The Briton went down 7-6 (10-8) 6-1 to Gerasimov, whose previous outing had been a 6-0 6-1 6-0 humbling at the hands of Melbourne surprise package Aslan Karatsev.

There were no signs of an impending implosion as Murray held his own in the first set, broken in the seventh game but responding instantly to reach a tie-break.

Gerasimov – playing Murray for the first time – converted a fourth set point, though, and his opponent was way off the pace in the second, forced to defend match point just to avoid an embarrassing bagel.

Home hopefuls Lucas Pouille and Gilles Simon were each also eliminated, while eighth seed Jan Lennard Struff went down to compatriot Peter Gojowczyk.

Radu Albot was the only seed in action at the Singapore Open and came through unscathed against John-Patrick Smith, one of three Australian players to depart across Tuesday's four matches at the tournament.

The next generation of tennis players are not close to knocking world number one Novak Djokovic off his mantle, according to three-time grand slam winner Andy Murray.

Djokovic’s big-match experience shined through while cruising to a straight-sets win over Russia’s Daniil Medvedev to seal his ninth Australian Open win and 18th career grand slam title.

The Serbian has lifted six of the last 10 slams, with 20-time slam-winner Rafael Nadal claiming three and Dominic Thiem capturing his first major honour at the 2020 US Open.

The draw opened up for the Austrian in Flushing Meadows when Djokovic was eliminated after defaulting in the fourth round when hitting a line judge with a stray ball.

Thiem is the only first-time winner of a major in the past 24 events over a six-year period, and Murray cannot see a changing of the guard anytime soon.

"The younger guys, for me, they've not shown that they're particularly close," Murray said.

"I expected the [Australian Open] final to be closer but it's a different standing to return or to serve in a grand slam final than a quarter-final or a semi.

"When you're coming up against someone who's won 17 of them, it's pretty intimidating.

"Obviously at the US Open, Dominic Thiem did what he had to do to win the event. But if Novak hadn't put a ball through the line judge's throat, it would have been the same outcome, I think."

Preparing for his first tour event of the season, an ATP 250 tournament in Montpellier, France, Murray has kept his distance from the grand-slam scene while rehabbing a long-term hip injury.

The 33-year-old admits he didn't even watch any of the action from Melbourne Park as he aims to rebuild his fitness and return to the highest level.

"I didn't watch any because I wanted to be there myself. It was a struggle to be honest," Murray added.

"I stopped following all the tennis players on social media and stuff because I just didn't really want to see it."

Murray goes up against world number 83 Egor Gerasimov of Belarus in the round of 32 on Tuesday, after finishing as runner-up to Ukraine's Illya Marchenko in an ATP Challenger event last week.

Andy Murray has withdrawn from the Australian Open a little over a week after testing positive for coronavirus.

Murray, a five-time finalist in Melbourne, went into isolation at home after returning a positive test on January 14.

The three-time major winner, ranked 123rd in the world, had hoped to compete at the first grand slam of the year after being granted a wildcard.

However, tournament organisers indicated it would be difficult for Murray to remain in the draw as he would be unable to travel via one of the official charter flights containing other players before going through the required period of quarantine.

On Friday, the 33-year-old confirmed he had been unable to come to a "workable" solution with authorities.

In a statement carried by The Guardian and other UK media outlets, Murray said: "Gutted to share that I won't be flying out to Australia to compete at the Australian Open.

"We've been in constant dialogue with Tennis Australia to try and find a solution but we couldn't make it work.

"I want to thank everyone there for their efforts, I'm devastated not to be playing out in Australia. It's a country and tournament that I love."

The build-up to this year's Australian Open has been impacted by players having to spend a two-week quarantine in their hotel accommodation.

A total of 72 competitors have been unable to leave their rooms after positive coronavirus tests among passengers on the chartered flights to Melbourne.

Players have been unable to access practice courts and many have complained on social media about sub-standard food and conditions, with Yulia Putintseva, the world number 28, sharing videos showing mice in her room.

The tournament is due to start on February 8.

The Australian Open has hinted Andy Murray will not be able to compete in Melbourne following his positive test for coronavirus.

Murray, a five-time finalist at the Australian Open, remains in good health and is isolating at home.

The three-time grand slam winner is still hoping to play and travel to Australia later than planned.

However, a statement from the tournament cast serious doubt on his involvement, with Murray – ranked 123rd in the world – having initially been granted a wildcard to play.

The statement read: "Andy Murray has advised that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is isolating at home in the UK.

"Unfortunately, this means that he will be unable to join the official AO charter flights arriving in Australia in the coming days to go through the quarantine period with the other players.

"The AO fans love Andy, and we know how much he loves competing here in Melbourne and how hard he'd worked for this opportunity."

The first grand slam of the year is starting three weeks later than it normally would on February 8 due to the complications of players flying into Australia amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Tournament organisers are putting on 15 chartered flights, which will operate at 25 per cent capacity, to bring players to the tournament.

Before boarding, competitors must test negative and will undergo a series of tests once in the country, while undergoing a 14-day quarantine period in Melbourne.

It was after a first-round defeat at the Australian Open two years ago that Murray stated his career might be over due to an ongoing hip injury.

Andy Murray's participation at the Australian Open is in doubt following a positive COVID-19 test.

Three-time grand slam champion Murray remains in good health but is isolating at home.

The 33-year-old Briton is still hopeful of being able to travel to Australia later than planned and taking part in the first grand slam of the year.

Murray received a wildcard for the Australian Open, where he has been a runner-up on five occasions.

It is set to be the Briton's first participation at Melbourne Park since announcing after a first-round loss in 2019 that his career was in the balance due to a persistent hip injury.

The Australian Open is scheduled to get under way on February 8.

Rafael Nadal will be without his coach Carlos Moya due to the pandemic, while Dominic Thiem's coach Nicolas Massu tested positive before travelling to Australia.

It is still hoped that Massu can make the trip following a negative result.