Andy Murray has crashed out of the Madrid Open in the first round after losing to Italian qualifier Andrea Vavassori in an embarrassing result.
The former world No.1 slipped to a 6-2 7-6 defeat in the Spanish capital as Vavassori claimed the first Masters 1000 win of his career at the clay-court event to set up a second-round tie against second seed Daniil Medvedev.
It is a concerning loss for Murray ahead of the French Open, with the British tennis hero having now suffered first-round defeats in straight sets in his last three tournaments on the ATP Tour.
The 35-year-old, who plays with a metal hip, crashed out in the opening rounds of the Miami Open and the Monte-Carlo Masters prior to Thursday’s defeat to world No.164 Vavassori, in which he made a dismal start, going 4-0 down in the first set.
Vavassori, meanwhile, when quizzed in his on-court interview if beating Murray was the biggest win of his career, said: ‘For sure!
‘It’s a dream come true at a tournament like this against a champion like him.
‘I have followed him for my entire tennis career, he is a hero for everybody on the tour.
‘Until the second half of the second set, I played the best tennis of my life. Then the nerves came in a little bit. At the end, just joy!’
Roland-Garros gets started at the end of May and Murray, currently ranked world No.52, will be hoping to turn his fortunes around before the second Grand Slam of the year.
The three-time major winner reached the third round at Indian Wells in March – and in his last tournament before that – he reached an ATP Tour final in Doha.
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