Andy Murray received an emotional tribute after his latest Wimbledon tournament began with a defeat in the men’s doubles, while long-time rival Novak Djokovic endured a tough training session on Thursday. Two-time British Wimbledon champion Murray, playing alongside brother Jamie, lost 7-6 (8/6) 6-4 to John Peers and Rinky Hijikata, to the bitter disappointment of a partisan Center Court crowd. Murray, the 2013 and 2016 Wimbledon champion, was entered into the men’s doubles and mixed doubles at the All England Club after running out of time to prepare for the singles matches following recent back surgery.
Murray’s parents, Judy and Willie, were on center court alongside his wife Kim and two of their daughters.
But the former world number one was unable to give his loyal fans the victory they wanted when the lights went out on a cool summer night, with the pair failing to convert a set point in the first set and being broken twice in the second.
After the defeat, the crowd watched a video of Murray’s career highlights, with warm tributes paid by a galaxy of stars including Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and former mixed doubles partner Serena Williams.
Djokovic was on court to witness his longtime rival’s thrilling night in the spotlight alongside past greats including John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova.
“Look, it’s hard because I would love to keep playing, but I can’t,” Murray said, crying, during an on-court interview. it was not insignificant.
“I want to play forever, I love the sport and it’s given me so much. It’s taught me a lot of lessons over the years that I can use for the rest of my life. I don’t want to stop, so it’s hard.”
The defeat does not yet mean the end of Murray’s Wimbledon journey, as he is also set to play mixed doubles with fellow Brit and former US Open champion Emma Raducanu.
The 37-year-old Scot, who has suffered injuries in recent years, is targeting the Paris Olympics, which begin later this month, as the final tournament in a glittering career.
Djokovic tested
Earlier, seven-time champion Djokovic came through a tough battle against British wild card Jacob Fearnley 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5.
It seemed all business as usual for the Serb, who raced into a two-set lead on Center Court, but 277th-ranked Fearnley broke his illustrious opponent twice in the third set to reduce the deficit.
Fearnley, playing his first Grand Slam, got two break points in the sixth game of the fourth set but missed the chance and Djokovic broke in the 11th game before serving for the win.
Djokovic, who plays with protection after a recent knee operation, is looking to equal Federer’s record of eight men’s Wimbledon titles and is aiming for a record 25th Grand Slam title.
“Hopefully as the tournament goes on I’ll feel better,” he said.
“I don’t know if I felt comfortable with myself in the third and fourth. You have hard days when you’re not feeling well.”
Fifth-seeded Jessica Pegula became the highest-ranked player to emerge from the tournament so far, losing 6-4 6-7 (7/9) 6-1 to China’s Wang Xinyu, who celebrated her first victory against a top -10 players.
Wang will face Harriet Dart, who defeated Nottingham champion Katie Boulter in an all-British clash for a place in the last 16.
World number one Iga Swiatek progressed smoothly at the expense of Croatian Petra Martic – her 21st successive victory.
A single break in each set was enough to give the 23-year-old, who has never reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, a 6-4 6-3 victory.
“It’s not the first time I’ve entered this tournament with a ‘streak,'” she said. “It’s not so easy to have this baggage on your shoulders.
“This year feels different. I don’t feel like everyone is focused on that. Two years ago it was a lot more difficult when there were 30 games (37).”
On the fourth day of Wimbledon, two-time finalist Ons Jabeur beat American qualifier Robin Montgomery, while 2022 women’s champion Elena Rybakina finished strong to defeat Germany’s Laura Siegemund 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.
On the men’s side, French Open finalist Alexander Zverev defeated Marcos Giron in straight sets, but Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas fell in four sets to Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori.
Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, seen as an outside corner for the title, was forced to withdraw from his second round match against Arthur Fils due to a knee injury.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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