I gave it everything, Murray says as title defence crumbles
● Champion vows to recover from hip injury after gruelling defeat by Querrey
Champion Andy Murray crashed out of Wimbledon yesterday but while the Scot was shattered by his quarterfinal defeat he insisted: “I gave it everything I had and I’m proud of that.”
After losing in five sets to America’s Sam Querrey the No 1 seed vowed to come back stronger – and hoped Johanna Konta would now go on and claim the women’s title for Britain.
The big-serving Querrey won 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1, 6-1 and although Murray was in control early on, the hip injury which had hampered his preparations in defence of his title rendered him virtually immobile by the finish.
“The whole tournament I’ve been a little bit sore,” Murray admitted. “But I tried my best right to the end. You know, I gave everything I had and I’m proud about that. But it’s obviously disappointing to lose at Wimbledon. There was an opportunity there. So I’m sad that it’s over.”
The hip problem, part of a wider picture of injury, illness and poor form which had blighted Murray’s season, was much discussed before and all the way through the tournament. He was asked if he really thought he could play seven matches all the way to the final and retain his crown, as he’d stated at the start.
“I was pretty close today,” he stressed. “It wasn’t like I was a million miles away from winning the match. Obviously the end was a bit of a struggle. But, you know, I almost found a way to get into the semis. I got through five matches. I was close-ish.”
Murray was pressed further on the injury and, now that his Wimbledon was over, asked if he would be more specific about the problem. “I’m not going to go into all the details of exactly what my hip issues are,” he said.
“I’ve been dealing with it for a very long time during my career. Obviously as you get older things are tougher to manage than when you’re younger – there’s a bit more wear and tear. I’ve managed to deal with it for a very long time. I’m sure moving forward I’ll be able to get through it. I just need to do all of the right things and be even more diligent and professional than I have been recently.”
Murray said he’d been desperate to play Wimbledon and that “short-term solutions” to the injury had to be found. “Obviously I managed to get through a bunch of matches and did okay [but] now I’ll sit down with my team and look at the next step, a bit longerterm. The US Open is six, seven weeks away so tomorrow [we’ll] come up with a plan for what I have to do next.”
Murray congratulated Querrey on his victory. “He served great and at the end of the match when he loosened up and was going for his shots he