Five-times runner-up Andy Murray and 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka have enjoyed plenty of deep runs at the Australian Open but the veteran pair were both dumped out in the first round on Monday.
Murray fell 6-4 6-2 6-2 to Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry while Wawrinka took 20th seed Adrian Mannarino to five sets before going down 6-4 3-6 5-7 6-3 6-0.
The last time Murray went out in the opening round of the Melbourne Park major was in 2019 when the Scot expressed doubts about his tennis future before going on to resurrect his career after having hip-resurfacing surgery.
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The 36-year-old twice Wimbledon champion has struggled to reach the latter stages at Grand Slams in recent years but dragged himself into the third round in Melbourne in 2023 with back-to-back five-sets wins.
Wawrinka was the only player in the men’s draw other than defending champion Novak Djokovic to have claimed the Melbourne Park trophy and the 38-year-old Swiss hoped Monday’s loss would not be his final appearance at the Grand Slam.
“I’ll see how the year goes. It’s just the beginning of the year,” Wawrinka said. “In general, I’m quite positive with where I am right now.
“Even after the loss, there is some good opportunity for me to keep pushing, keep playing some good results and hopefully I can come back next year.”
Raonic retirement sends De Minaur through
Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic handed in-form local hope Alex de Minaur an easy passage into the Australian Open second round on Monday when he retired injured in the third set.
The 33-year-old was clearly in pain, seemingly with a hip problem, and called it a day while losing 6-7 (6/8), 6-3, 2-0 on Rod Laver Arena.
“First of all I hope Milos a speedy recovery,” said the 10th-seeded Australian, who beat Novak Djokovic at the lead-up United Cup.
“It’s not great to see him like this. He deserves to be healthy and playing the incredible tennis that he has done for so many years.”
Milos Raonic of Canada waves as he leaves Rod Laver Arena after retiring from his first round match against Alex de Minaur of Australia at the Australian Open tennis championships at Melbourne Park | Photo Credit: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/ AP
Raonic, who made the semi-finals in 2016, has long been plagued by injures and was inactive on the tour for nearly two years from July 2021 to June 2023.
He took a medical time-out while leading 5-4 in the first set before returning, but ultimately he could not go on.
“It’s no secret I have started the year pretty well,” said De Minaur as he looked ahead to a next-round clash with unseeded Italian Matteo Arnaldi.
“Now it’s all about keeping my head down and keeping doing the same things.”
- Inputs from AFP
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