Andy Murray says he has lost respect for Stefanos Tsitsipas after bowing out of the US Open to the world No.3 in a dramatic and at times ill-tempered near five-hour five-setter.
The 34-year-old Scot was livid at the lengthy bathroom breaks Tsitsipas took between sets and demanded more should be done to clamp down on the “nonsense”.
“It’s not so much leaving the court. It’s the amount of time,” Murray said after his 2-6 6-7 (7-9) 3-6 6-3 6-4 first-round defeat.
“I spoke to my team before the match about it and said to expect that, prepare for it if things were not going his way.
“So I was trying to do that but the issue is that you cannot stop the way that that affects you physically.
“When you’re playing a brutal match like that, you know, stopping for seven, eight minutes, you do cool down.
“It’s just disappointing because I feel it influenced the outcome of the match.
“I rate him a lot. I think he’s a brilliant player. I think he’s great for the game.
“But I have zero time for that stuff at all, and I lost respect for him.
“That’s what I feel.
“But if everyone else feels like that’s totally cool and there’s no issue with it, then maybe I’m the one being unreasonable.
“But I think it’s nonsense. And he knows it, as well.”
Murray came so close to the biggest win of his comeback from career-saving hip surgery, almost defying the odds, the heat and a slippery pair of shoes as well as the borderline gamesmanship from the 23-year-old Tsitsipas.
Having won the first set – the first he had taken from a top-five player since 2017 – Murray had two points to clinch the second in the tiebreaker.
But drenched in sweat in the humid conditions, he began complaining that his trainers had become too slippery – yet it soon became apparent he did not have a spare pair.
“Yeah, that’s my bad, but I’ve never had that happen in a match,” he said.
With the match level at 2-2 sets all, Tsitsipas disappeared for yet another off-court break and was given a time violation – but Murray was clearly wound up.
After dropping serve in the opening game he was heard muttering about “cheating” and later asked supervisor Gerry Armstrong why it was taking Tsitsipas so long.
“What’s he doing in there? It’s never taken me that long to go to the toilet,” he moaned.
With the exit of 2012 title holder Murray and 2014 champion Marin Cilic, who retired early in the fifth set against Philipp Kohlschreiber because of an injury, the only man left in the draw with even one slam title is Novak Djokovic.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
A younger Tsipitas no doubt knew that an old Murray with a bad hip would stiffen up and used it to his advantage . Very weak way to beat someone, but he wont cop flack for it compared to Kyrgios who usually helps his opponent.