Andy Murray was one of the stars at the Australian Open 2023, and he has once again shown how dangerous he can be for opponents at the Grand Slams. The British tennis legend was knocked out in the third round by Roberto Bautista Agut.
In the two previous rounds, Andy had defeated in five sets, recovering two sets from a disadvantage, first Matteo Berrettini, then Thanasi Kokkinakis. The match in the second round concluded shortly after 0400 local time in Melbourne.
Andy told, as reported by Eurosport “I think obviously you never know exactly when the end will be. But I would like to go out and play tennis like this, compete with the best players in the world in the biggest events and do myself justice.
Maybe there were times in the last year or so where I didn’t feel like I was playing well and I didn’t like the way I was playing. Those sacrifices and that effort that I made allowed me to get through those games and play at a high level that I think was fun for people watching.”
Andy Murray can still be dangerous at the Slams
Murray added: “I felt good about the way I was playing, it’s more fun for me when I get to a big event and I really believe I can do some damage.
But, yes, I can have a deeper run than a third round of a slam, no doubt about that, but obviously you can have open plans for you, but I also have to help myself with that. If I had played at this level last year, I probably wouldn’t have been ranked 50 or 60 in the world, so it’s up to me to try and change that.
I feel like I gave everything I had to this event, so I’m proud of it. With everything you’re doing, that’s all you can do. You can’t always control the result, you can’t control how well you play or the result, but you can control the effort you put in and I’ve given everything I’ve had in the last three games, so I’m very proud of that.
But I’m also disappointed because I worked a lot earlier this year and was playing well enough to have a really good run, a deep run. Also tonight I’m racing against a guy who’s 20 in the world and still very tight, so considering the circumstances I’m disappointed as I feel I could have gone a little further.”
